Crisscross
by Chranze
Summary: This was not supposed to happen. I was supposed to marry the man I love... Not his brother. I took the wrong step. He did too. And that was all it took to end us up like this. Crisscrossed. SR IK KA
1. Chapter 1

**Crisscross**

**Chapter One**

_Little note here:_  
**>>>**Author's point of view  
**>>Kagome>>** Kagome's point of view  
**>>Sango>>** Sango's point of view and etc etc...Get the drift?

* * *

**>>Kagome>>**

I refuse to believe this. I thought this was some kind of joke when I got the news, but now it seemed so real. My grandmother wouldn't have done this to me...would she? Well, she probably thought this was good for me. How was she supposed to know whether I was going to be in love at the age of twenty-seven or not?

But I am.

And all because of some stupid contract, a foolish promise from my inconsiderate grandmother,

I wouldn't be able to love him anymore.

I crumpled up the paper in my hands. The evidence I wished to burn and bury the ashes into the earth, but will still exist in the knowledge of everyone in Japan.

The weather seemed to be reflecting the turmoil taking place inside me. Rain splattered onto the windows and the wind howled outside. The weather was making the night more darker than usual, but I didn't bother to turn on the lights. The red numbers of the digital clock read 11:08.

I just sat there. On the carpet. Head bowed and eyes brimming with tears. I shifted my gaze to the white dress on the bed. The dress I would be wearing when I walk down the aisle. The dress I would be wearing in seven days time. The dress I would be wearing when I stand beside him, giving myself away for someone I couldn't care less about. And he would be sitting on the benches.

Watching me like every one else.

Watching me bind myself with the man I most detest at the moment with something called marriage.

I stood up abruptly and opened the door. It banged onto the wall, leaving a dent, but I didn't care.

I refuse to lose.

I stomped down the hall and raced into the study where he spent most of his time.

The study is a marvelous place. Handsome wooden furniture, a polished grand piano, shelves of books and ancient scrolls, and rows of antiques. But now it's on my least favorite places list. Why? Because it was where **he** spent most of his time.

I finally stood in the doorway of the room, head high and chest heaving from running and anger.

And there he was.

Sesshomaru Koizu .

The most wanted bachelor in Japan, the president of the booming Toukijin Industries, the discoverer of the Shikon no Tama, and the first respectable son of the great Inutashio Koizu .

The bastard.

He was standing in front of the window, watching the rain pour onto the world below. There were to be a terrible storm. The worst one to come in all of Japan's history. He just stood there, ignoring me, but I knew he could smell my presence as well as my anger. After all, he was an inu youkai.

"Sesshomaru," I glared at his back and saw his reflection on the window move his golden eyes to his left slightly. "You have to stop this. No one's going to listen to me! Pitiful ningen woman like you said! But you! You're a great respected demon with money flying out of your ass! Do something damn it!"

Okay, I was buttering him up but swearing at the same time. Not the right way of buttering people up? Big deal. I just needed him to listen to me.

Plan not working 'cause he's still staring out the window like some dazed psychopath.

"Sesshomaru Koizu!" I went up to him and practically yelled into his ears. "It's just some contract! My grandmother has deceased for heaven's sake! We have to-"

"Do you realize that we are not the only ones affected by this marriage?" His voice was cold like always and a little softer than usual. He was angry. Not good.

"Hell yes!" But I waspissed off too.

"Do you realize there will be even more people affected if this marriage doesn't take place?"

"What?"

"Inuyasha."

That shut me up.

"...How?"

"Use your imagination."

I swear I would've slapped him if he hadn't move to make his exit right then. But I wasn't finished.

"Why are you following the contract?" I couldn't help but to sneer. I needed him to listen to me.

He stopped walking.

"Why are you willing to give yourself to a pitiful ningen woman like me?"

He turned his head a little to the left and I could see the menacing glint in his eyes.

"Can't bring yourself to ruin your perfect reputation? Or is the Great Sesshomaru finally losing his cold-"

I suddenly felt pain surged up my neck. My back slammed into the wall as he held me by the throat. My neck was throbbing as my heart beated rapidly. With every tightening grip, a flash of white passed through my eyes. Somewhere, it seemed like a good distance away, I heard Inuyasha's angry voice call him. He merely squeezed my throat tighter and glared at me with those golden orbs. This was my first time seeing his impassive mask off of his face. His eyes were filled with rage and I could hear his angry growl.

"You may be my future wife, but that doesn't mean I won't kill you. Watch your mouth. I am not doing this for **you**. I am doing this for **her**."

Her? Who was...Her...?

He let go of my throat and I toppled to the ground, gasping for air. I was sweating and shaking uncontrollably. I heard Inuyasha yell at him, but as always, he just ignored him and left the room. I soon felt the familiar comforting arms around me, holding me securely.

"Kagome," Inuyasha whispered into my ear. "Are you all right?"

That did it. His concerned voice just made me crash down. I couldn't take it anymore. Tears I had been holding back for the last few days finally rolled down my cheeks. I grabbed hold of his shirt and started shouting into it, hoping it would muffle the sounds.

That night I spent the night in his room. Our clothes strewn all over the floor and my tears rolling down his chest. He would soothe me now and then by rubbing me on the back, but it didn't help much. So I just cried the night away in his arms for the last time.

I met the love of my life. It took me three months to realize it.

I had two weeks to be with him.

And now my world was slowly falling apart.

* * *

>>> 

He ran. He never stopped. He didn't care if it was pouring outside. He didn't care that he was getting soaked to the bone. He had had enough.

Under his father's orders, he fought off the urge to run to her side. Under his father's orders, he had removed every picture, every gift she had given him throughout the years. Under his father's orders, he had refused to make contact with her any way.

Screw his father.

He just saw his future wife being comforted by her lover. Hell, why couldn't he be comforted? He was the one who was suffering most from this whole shit. If she was going to break the rules, he was going to do the same.

He ignored the screeches of horns when he sprinted across the street at a red light.

He ignored the yells of the security guard at the gates of the condominium.

He ignored his conscience that was screaming at him not to go. To not to cross the line.

Finally, he ignored her warning not to come to her as he banged on the door that heldthe sign 707, completely ignoring the doorbell.

"Who is it?"

Yes... There was that soft voice he had been dying to hear. He closed his eyes as he waited in the hallway, water dripping down from his drenched body andsaturating the crimson carpet under him like her tears had once did exactly a month ago.

* * *

Rin Akita wondered who was at her door at such a late time. It was eleven thirty for heaven's sake. A time when most people would be knocked out in their beds. She put on a robe over her pale nightdress as she made her way to the door. She checked if the locks were in place and placed her eye on the peephole. A glance of the long silver hair was all it took to make her breathless in surprise. Her eyes immediately brimmed with tears. 

She leaned lightly on the door, a single tear rolling down her pale cheek.

"Sesshomaru." Her voice sounded determined, but he could detect a slight waver in her tone. "I told you not to come...You're making it harder for the both of us. Please...Just leave..." She whispered the last word as if she dreaded him to do so.

He could smell her tears. He could never forget that scent. He had smelt it when his left arm had nearly been torn off. He had smelt it when he had closed the door behind him after he had told her about the contract. He had smelt it when he had left her a month ago as he turned his back on her.

He mentally shook his head. Why was he thinking about the past again if it only was going to hurt him more? He's been doing this too often. He leaned forward when he heard her disapproval and his forehead came into contact with the wooden door with a loud thud.

The sudden sound startled her and she instantly became worried because it sounded all too familiar to the sound of someone going unconscious. She hesitated. Maybe this was some trick? This wouldn't be the first time she would fall for this one. But an audible groan behind the door reached her ears and her hands were immediately fumbling with the locks.

She cautiously pulled the door open to find him standing in front of her, soaking wet and on his feet.

She had planned to persuade him to go back, but one look at his depressed state drove that thought out of her mind.

"Sesshomaru, what happened? It's pouring outside. Didn't you even care to bring an-"

Her words turned into a small gasp of surprise when his arms suddenly pulled her into a tight embrace. He pushed both of them through the doorway, causing the door to close behind them and the automatic lock systemdid its dutywith a click.

When was the last time he felt the pleasing warmth of her body? Her soft form crushed in his arms? Her words of concern fill his ears? He gently crushed her petit form, trying to control the emotions that were running haywire inside of him.

"Sesshomaru..."

Her whisper merely caused him to tighten his embrace and push her to the wall.

He simply loved her scent. The faint but sweet aroma of fruits from the perfume he had given her for her twenty fourth birthday was lingering in her natural scent. He buried his nose deeper into her soft tresses.

She had stopped her futile actions of pushing him away. She wasn't wrapping her arms around him like she had used to only a few weeks ago, but she was clutching on to his damp dress shirt as if she was preventing her arms to do so, not caring whether her robe was getting soaked by pressing onto his body.

They just stood there for a few minutes or so, trying to calm their reacting bodies from the familiar contact they had both dearly missed. Then she gently pushed him away. He did lift his torso from her, but did not release his hold around her waist.

"Why don't you stay here for the night," she whispered, looking at the floor. "It's too late for you to go anywhere now and the weather's terrible."

She pulled herself out of his grip and headed for the bathroom. The sound of water splashing into the empty tub echoed throughout the one-room flat.

He didn't move from his spot. He stood there, observing every little corner of her tidy home.

Thehuge bed, whichhe had given her much to her protest, was still at the back of the large room, the clean white sheets covering the comfy mattress and the long fluffed pillow. It was there where they would spend the night together, savoring each other's warmth. The bookshelves were still filled with the colorful hard covered books of all kinds: poetry, psychology, history, and all kinds ofliterature. The books she would read out loud to him while snuggling in his arms as he idly played with her hair. The beige armchair next to the tall lamp was there. The place where they had shared gentle kisses so many times. Her in his lap, his arms snaking up her top, their lips crushed together. The small table for two in the middle of the room near the kitchen where she would serve warm meals, which was usually breakfast the next day after he had spent the night with her, was alsoin thesame place

Everything in the flat. Everything in the whole goddamn one-room flat reminded him of the times when they had openly showed their affection towards each other without a care in the world. The happy times when he would enjoy the envious looks of other men when he kissed her in public. The peaceful times when he would watch her sleeping form in his arms. The blissful times when he heard her moan his name and felt her soft hands caress his face.

All gone. Nothing but a memory. Nothing but a piece of history between two lovers. Something that was a history was now a fantasy for them. A fantasy for two lovers who lived in the world of reality where they were banned to make any contact with each other.

He came out of his thoughts when he felt her delicate hand gently pull his large one towards the bathroom. She closed the bathroom door and placed the towel onto the counter. She held up her hands to help him unbutton his shirt like she always did, but quickly caught herself. A tiny blush crept up her cheeks as she lowered them.

"I'll go make something warm for you."

She turned to leave, but he pulled her into his embrace once more, this time a little gentler than the last. He buried his face into the crook of her neck as his large hands clutched onto her petit form.

"Sesshomaru..." She whispered into his ear. "You've got to stop. You are going to be married next week for heaven's sake."

"Do you really think I care?" his low voice made her unconsciously shiver in anxiety.

After what seemed like an eternity, he felt her arms wrap themselves gently around his neck. A satisfied sigh escaped his lips. She stroked his damp hair and surpressed a giggle when he whimpered quietly like a dog. He lifted his head and whispered onto her lips.

"Would you like to join me?"

Her eyes looked questioning, so he used his own to answer her. His golden orbs moved to his right to look at the large tub filled with water.

He did not miss that flash of yearning in her eyes when she shook her head. He smirked slightly and simply cut off the belt that was holding her robe together.

"I'll take that as a yes."

* * *

She knew it was wrong. But she kept telling herself that it was **him** who had undressed her and it was **him** who had pulled her into the tub so it was entirely **his** fault. She did not come in because she wanted to and she was merely staying in the water because he would not let go of her. She knew she was lying to herself. 

He pulled her closer to himself like he had many times before. The water level stopped just below his shoulders and his silver hair was floating in the warm water, contrasting with the raven tresses of the young woman in his arms.

She blushed when she felt his manhood underneath her buttocks. She could feel it already becoming hard. He smirked slightly when he detected arousal in her scent. He pulled her even more closer so she was leaning on him. Then his hands started to roam. His right hand came up until it made contact with her breasts. He squeezed her left breast gently, earning a soft moan from her. His thumb leisurelytoyed with the erect nipple as he licked the mating mark on the pulse of her neck.

A blue crescent moon, an identical one of the mark on his forehead. The mating mark. The mark he had made on their first night he still couldn't forget. It was a symbol telling that she belonged to him and to him only. It was a mark that meant the world to him. A mark that she was his. It was a symbol...That will soon disappear in a week's time when he recites the oath.

His eyebrows scrunched slightly as he kissed it once more.

His left hand wandered downwards her body and cupped the junction between her legs. Her body tensed, moving instinctively closer to him, but relaxed as his fingers played with the sensitive bud. His index traced the soft skin, making her nerves tingle with excitement. A claw carefully inserted itself into her core.

Her body was betraying her. Her mind was screaming not to respond, yet her body was doing the exact opposite. Her legs itched to wrap themselves around his hips and her arms longed to place themselves around his neck as her mouth yearned to give him the seductive smile that would always drive him wild.

'No...We can't do this!'

Her body was screaming in protest, but she suppressed the moan that was about to escape her lips and broke the contact with him. She felt ashamed to be there with him, doing what lovers did. Doing what they were not supposed to do. She opened her mouth to speak, but he beat her to it.

"Rin," he closed the short distance between them, the water splashing gently as he did. "This may be our last night together."

She said nothing but stared into his eyes. She could see remorse in his eyes, love and lust swirling within it. She could feel his arms placing themselves around her waist again. He came so close, their noses were almost touching each other.

"Make it a night to remember," he whispered onto her lips. "For me...Please."

It was never easy to hear him say that word. The word "please". He was always the dominant one, always in control. Didn't need to use the word "please." But he always used it for her and for her only. When he did, she would always award him for what he wanted.

They always said 'please' is the magic word for anything.

So she released a spell...The last spell she would ever give him.

She responded by placing her arms around his neck and immediately he crushed his lips on to her soft ones. His eager tongue hungrily lapped her lips like a starved dog licking at the remains of a meal. She parted her lips slightly and his tongue plunged into the familiar cavern. It traced every corner, every line of her mouth. He felt as if he was being electrified when her hesitant but eager tongue met his searching one. He practically devoured her as she answered in equal passion, leaving both of them breathless by the second.

The atmosphere around the two seemed to get heavier and denser by the minute as her hands fisted the roots of his hair gently and his arms pulled her even more closer to him. His lips left her protesting mouth and trailed kisses down her slender neck, across her collarbone, and down to her breasts. He took one in his mouth and suckled like a hungry pup. A soft moan escaped her lips every time his tongue teased her erect nipple and he could feel the painful sores of his manhood becoming rock hard. She unconsciously fisted his hair tighter and pulled him ever more closer to her, causing him to suckle harder.

He finally kissed her breast and raised his head so they were at eye level. Sharp golden orbs stared into soft cinnamon ones. Her eyebrows crunched slightly to indicate her worry and she kissed his forehead as he embraced her once more. She stroked his head for a while then reached for the shower. Turning on the faucet, she gave him a small smile and brought the shower over his head. She carefully stroked his hair under the warm rays of water. He let out a content sigh as he buried his face between the valley of her breasts.

They were trying to enjoy their evening bath. Like they always did in the past. He would sometimes come to her in an exhausted state after a day of endless meetings and countless contracts. He would knock on the door and somehow she would always know that it was him. She would greet him with a kiss on the lips and would lead him into the bathroom and start the tub. Then she would help him out of his clothes while he would constantly kiss her forehead and undress her as well. They would get into the tub and after many caresses and kisses, she would get the shower and wash his hair for him. She had always loved to play with his hair.

That's what they were doing now. Well, what they were trying to do, while ignoring the heavy thought of this being their last night together.

She turned off the water and reached for the bottle of shampoo. She rubbed the slick liquid onto his hair and started massaging his skull. He let out a content groan.Foam started to fall from the sides of his face as she skillfully rubbed all the refreshing bubbles starting from the roots of his hair and all the way to the silky tips. A quick rinse of water and the foam was soon gone from his locks and floating in the water. She put the shower back to its place and kissed him on the forehead. A satisfied smile was threatening to form on his lips, but a frustrated growl escaped out of him instead when he heard the phone ringing.

He could feel her trying to unbend her knees to stand, but he tightened his hold around her even more. She embraced his head gently and whispered into his hair.

"I need to get that Sesshomaru," she kissed his head once more. "That could be Sango."

He grudgingly let her go, knowing that calls from the hospital could be fatal. She got out of the tub and wrapped herself in a towel before leaving the room to answer the constantly ringing phone.

He leaned back and let out a small sigh.

He had been with her for over two years now...

And all because of his deceased mother...

His world was falling apart. He wondered where he took the wrong turn. When he closed himself up from others at the age of five? When he refused to answer his father's question about his mother's death? Or was it from the moment he was born?

He got out of the tub and dried himself. No use staying in the tub without her.

When he opened the door, with nothing on, but the skin he was born in, he heard her exhausted voice talk through the phone.

"No, doctor. I don't need you to come."

Doctor? Sango was a nurse... He walked up to her and wrapped his arms around her waist, startling her for a moment and raised his left eyebrow. She merely shook her head. That would have not bothered him much just a few weeks ago... But it bothered him like hell now. Was it one of those annoying humans that were always stalking her? He heard a drawling masculine voice from the other end of the line.

"Are you sure, Rin? Perhaps you are lonely? You know I'm always free."

That pissed him way off. He let out an audible growl he was sure the man on the other line could hear.

"What's that? Is there someone there with you?" He could hear the anger in his demanding voice.

"Maybe there is and maybe there isn't. I'm really tired doctor, I need to get my rest. Good night." She hung up the phone andplugged off the phone cord.

She turned around to face him, a little taken back to see him still growling quietly.

"He's just a new doctor," she said as she kissed his cheek, "Came last week and the man just won't leave me alone."

"Would you like me to deal with him?" He gazed down at her with an intense look on his face.

She remained silent with an expression on her face, which he couldn't tell what it was. Worry? Concern? But before he could ponder any more about it, she wrapped her arms around his neck and whispered into his ear.

"I thought you wanted to make this night a memorable one," her breath tickled his ear. "We don't want to waste time talking about someone else do we?"

He responded by pushing her onto the bed.

That night, passionate moans could be heard from behind the closed doors of the condo, number seven-hundred-seven, and it echoed endlessly through the hallways of the silent building.

She would hold onto him tightly as he pushed himself inside of her, enjoying the heated cries of his name.

Long fingers caressed the supple skin of the young woman while soft lips played upon his forehead.

The last night for the two lovers took place in the same place where their first night had more than two years ago as the dark sky turned into a light shade of purple anouncing the arrival of dawn.

* * *

**Ta-da-!** New story. Rated M. Don't think I'm ready for this...but I gave it a shot. 

This story was first typed in the middle of the night (3am to be exact), bear with me if it's a little unnatural or something... I just want to see what people think of this fic. I have the important details all planned out, but the updates will be kinda slow...I mean slower than my other fics. **A Furry Nuisance** is on progress for those who read it! Please review for me if you read this fic, because I can suddenly feel like being lazy and not even continue this story at all if I get little reviews heh. Comments, flames, criticism, praises all welcome!

A freakin' tired Chranze trudging off...


	2. Chapter 2

**Crisscross**

**Chapter Two **

Rin's eyes fluttered open to see the familiar blue crescent mark. She smiled softly as she heard his steady breathing, her eyes switching to the clock on the bedside table that read 5:09 am.

She shifted her weight to sit up, but the strong pair of arms pulled her down again and crushed her into his chest. She looked up to see him growling unconsciously in his sleep. She smiled again as she wondered if he was even taking care of himself. It was not like him to be practically knocked out in his sleep. Other times he would annoy her by cradling her sleepy form, telling her to go to sleep while constantly reminding her that he didn't need much rest as she did being a youkai.

He was being quite protective over her, holding her in a tight embrace as if someone was going to pry her away from him.

She smiled into his bare chest. She never could remember when she was last protected in her life. After her parent's death at the age of three, she lived with her grandmother, the only family member left, until death suddenly took her away, three days after she arrived. She inherited both her parents' and grandmothers'fortune, but she was only a child back then who was forced to live in an orphanage. Luckily for her, she soon found a home in a wealthy family after a week at the shelter. She was loved and cared non-stop for a week, before her foster parents had to get back to their regular assiduous lives as workaholics. She would always be left in the vast house with the maids, obediently attending to all the personal tutoring that would take up most of her daily schedule. Her parents would come only once a month just to check on her, saying that they loved her, but would soon leave after an hour or so. She grew up lonely, but she became the fine woman with a master's degree in medication like her foster parents have hoped her to become and worked as a nurse in the hospital located in the heart of Tokyo.

Maybe it was because she was never used to being cared for during her childhood, but she tended to be responsible of everything that happened around her. It was this little characteristic about her that caught his attention in the first place.

She felt safe in the warm cage she was in, but she was starting to feel a little uncomfortable because of the stale air inside the room. She shifted once more, but his arms wouldn't budge. She wiggledan arm out of his grip and rubbed his left ear. Her fingers ran over the outline of the soft skin and a content groan escaped his lips. She suppressed a giggle as his ear began to twitch. She finally felt his arms loosen its grip and she skillfully rolled out of his reach.

She got into her robe, not noticing a golden orb cracking open as she made her way to the veranda.

A gust of cold wind greeted her as she opened the door to look at the morning Tokyo view before her. The sky was a light hue of orange and the heavy rain had turned into a light shower. She went across the veranda to stand in front of the wet railing. Her feet were getting wet from the drenched floor and her body temperature was dropping every few seconds with the arrival of another gust of wind. She could see the tall Tokyo tower from her veranda, towering over the many buildings beside it, including the massive Takashimaya mall. It was there where she had met him for the first time.

She started when she felt a pair of arms snake themselves around her waist. She leaned into his warm body with a smile as he tucked her head under his chin. She felt something hard pressing on the back of her head and turned around in his loose grip. Slender fingers wrapped themselves gently around a silver locket. It was the locket she had given him on the day he came out of the hospital. It was in a simple oval shape with a small dragon carved in the metal. It was a little something she made for him as a get well present(it had taken her three months to finish it), which he had grudgingly accepted. She never saw him without the locket starting from the next day.

She fiddled with the small locket absent-mindedly, her eyes locked onto the pendant.

"I thought your father told you to get rid of everything," she whispered quietly.

"He did." He kissed her on the forehead.

She looked up, her eyes questioning.

"Have you ever seen me listening to anyone?"

She couldn't help to let out a small laugh. "No...Maybe except me," she smiled as she looked up to him.

He raised his eyebrows slightly. She placed her finger under his eye and pulled back the skin to reveal the thin veins of the inside.

"Pink..." She muttered the color of the skin and pulled her finger back. "It's supposed to be blood red."

His eyes turned into a deep crimson.

"I didn't mean your eye Sesshomaru Koizu, I meant the skin." She gave him a wry smile as she stroked his head again. "You're lacking nutrients."

"And you would know anything about my health because?" He nuzzled his nose against the crook of her neck.

"I'm a nurse, Mr. Koizu." She giggled as he licked her skin. " It's my job to know."

He heard that line before...

He placed his right hand at the small of her back while his left pushed her waist against him. She wrapped her arms around his neck and the two stood for a few minutes without a word, simply enjoying the other's presence.

He could tell she's lost a lot of weight. And her skin seemed to be a lot paler than before.

He gathered her in his arms, successfully startling her, and carried her inside the room. He slid the door behind him to block out the frigid wind and settled himself into the armchair that faced the veranda, where he could see the Tokyo view clearly through the glass doors.

She snuggled closer to him and closed her eyes. Soon the sound of her slow steady breathes reached his ears, telling him that she had fallen back to sleep. He idly stroked her hair as he stared at the tall ediface of the Takashimaya mall. The very place where he first met her. He too closed his own eyes and recalled the day when he had met the woman in his arms as if it was yesterday.

* * *

_April 25th, year 2003_. Exactly ten days after the discovery of the legendary Shikon no Tama. The discoverers? An overly laid back wolf demon with the name of Kouga Tawamura and his pissed off successful friend, Sesshomaru Koizu. Kouga was no archeologist. In fact, he was the author of the best-selling mystery novel in Japan, who was pissed off on that fateful day of the discovery. He was suffering from a writer's block and had called Sesshomaru two in the morning, asking him suggestions for recovering from it. His unfortunate friend was ticked to the very end, but growled out the first thing that popped into his mind: To go and drink a cup of tea. Maybe fate was playing with them that night, because Kouga had heard his suggestion of drinking tea as 'go plant a couple of trees' over the weak line. 

He had thought that was the stupidest idea, but decided to go with it.

Then there were two problems.

Problem number one: He didn't have a tree to plant.

He solved that by dragging his pot cactus out in the middle of the night and up the huge knoll behind his residence with a shovel in hand.

Problem number two: He had been whistling and stabbing the earth with his shovel, when the unsteady layer of dirt gave in under his feet, making him fall into a pit of darkness. After letting out a loud string of curses and rubbing his hip quite ferociously, he realized he was in a dark enclosed cave full of decayed demon bodies. He looked above him and realized he was a good number of feet underground with no way of climbing back up, due to the smooth walls.

He solved that by calling his dear, ticked off friend and asking him meekly if he could help him out.

Half an hour later, a rather annoyed Sesshomaru lowered himself into the pitch black cavern. The only light was the pale moonlight that was coming in from the large hole Kouga had conveniently made when he fell.

Sesshomaru was about to levitate the two of them through the opening above by using his yougi, when Kouga stopped him. He growled in annoyance, but noticed the purple glint in the darkness ahead of them, which was exactly what Kouga had been trying to point out to him. After swiftly leaping over the massive pile of decayed carcasses and thick bones, they found a stone statue in the shape of a human, dressed in traditional miko clothes. There was a large hole in her right chest and demons were climbing all over the lower half of her body, but her right arm was stretched high out of their reach, the fist clenched tightly. The small glint of purple flashed in the stone fist.

Sesshomaru had said it wouldn't be smart to break the hand off the statue, which was exactly what Kouga did, but nevertheless was quite surprised when he saw the purple jewel glistening in the moonlight when Kouga crushed the remaining stone hand.

The headlines of most of the newspapers of Japan the nextdayheld the words 'The legendary Shikon no Tama found by a nature-loving author'. Kouga had been showered with questions by numerous reporters which annoyed him like hell for the next few days and his phone never stopped ringing, due to the calls of curators and archeologists, asking him to hand over the priceless artifact to them.

Kouga finally lost it and "accidentally" slipped out that his most "loyal" friend Sesshomaru Koizu was there when he hadfound the jewel. That got quite a lot of interviewers off his back, but an infuriated Sesshomaru, who was pestered to no end by reporters, was soon after his blood. And that was how Sesshomaru Koizu became to be known as the discoverer of the most wanted jewel of Japan along with a smug Kouga Tawamura.

Now the two had to finallycome up witha decision of where to contribute the artifact. In other words, Sesshomaru simply made Kouga handle everything while he went back to his normal life of being the young president of the booming Toukijin Industries. The result? Kouga had finally chose the national museum in the prominent Takashimaya mall.

"It's run by a nutter," Kouga explained as he and Sesshomaru headed for the revolving doors of the mall, "His name is...uh...Toottoot...Or something like it."

"Toutousai," Sesshomaru nonchalantly corrected. He hated being in these cramped public places. Too many people goggling at him because of the unusual color of silver of his hair. Not to mention the women pointing at either him or Kouga, giggling hysterically like a bunch of hormone filled teenagers and blushing in a deep shade of red.

"How do you know the nutter's name?" Kouga asked flabbergastedas they entered the mall. It was full of demons and humans of all shape and size, busily trying to get their spring shopping done. Sesshomaru growled inwardly at the thought that he had to pass through the thick mass of people.

"Family friend," he curtly answered as they headed to the escalator through the mob of people. He heard Kouga growl next to him. It was a common trait the two of them shared. Both demons hated jam-packed public places and had little patience. The only differencebetween them was that Kouga had no problem showing his disapproval while Sesshomaru's impassive face never showed anything.

"Stupid museum had to be in the very middle of the god damn mall," Kouga muttered.

"Why did you pick this museum out of all the rest?" Sesshomaru asked as they arrived at the steepescalator. Many people were sticking to the right side of it, leisurely enjoying the short rest. Others were hurriedly going up the ascending steps on the left side of the escalator. This was the main escalator that headed directly for the third floor. It was located in the middle of the round layout of the building, allowing anyone on any floor to have a clear view of it.

"You want the truth?"

"Did he bribe you?"

"Nah, but he wouldn't be the only one if he-"

"Excuse me."

Kouga looked behind him to see a young woman smiling politely at him. He stared at her for a moment or so, wondering why she had called him, when he realized he was standing on the left side of the escalator. He quickly squeezed himself behind Sesshomaru, successfully annoying the man behind him, and laughed weakly as an apology.

"Thank you."

She flashed him another smile of gratitude and headed up the moving steps.

Kouga let out a low whistle as he stared at her retreating form. "I got to say, she is one looker."

Sesshomaru merely nodded as he watched the woman make her way up the steps. He couldn't help but notice her slender legs under her short skirt.

"Is dog boy done goggling at pretty woman?"

Sesshomaru glared down at his friend, who had a teasing smirk on his face and a pair of eyebrows that were moving up and down.

"And I was saying...Oh yeah. You want to know why I chose this place?"

Sesshomaru was only half listening. He was watching the young woman make her way up the escalator, thinking that he had seen her before, and saw a small boy around the age of seven standing quite a number of steps ahead of her.

"This museum was the closest from my place."

Sesshomaru refused to roll his eyes. He knew Kouga always made critical choices by the most absurd methods, but this was way too extravagant.

"And then this nutcase wanted to buy it from me...He said he wanted to add it to his collection. Offered me five hundred thousand US dollars. Rich bastard," Kouga scoffed, "Didn't take it. He started threatening me in the end and that pissed me way off."

"Did he call first?"

"Nope. Toto did."

"Toutousai."

"Yeah, whatever. He offered me a milkshake too. Much better deal than that bastard made with me."

He was about to ask the name of the man who had tried to make the deal with him when the escalator suddenly jerked with a strenuous screech, earning all the attention from the shoppers on every floor. His gaze was still on the young female ahead of him even when the escalator came to a abrupt stop, which was why he was able to recall everything that took place that fateful moment.

The small child ahead of her had jerked back when the escalator came to a sudden stop and he could see that the boy was going to lose his balance. And he did.

His golden orbs saw the child letting out a cry of surprise as he fell backwards. He then noticed the young woman darting forward instinctively. She caught the child in her arms, but the sudden weight had caused her to lean back too far. He saw her falling backwards and the next thing he knew, he had left Kouga wayback at thelower half of the escalator, which was where he was standing a few milliseconds ago, and had caught her falling form in his arms.

Scattered applause could be heard from the escalator and frommany on-lookers from the floors of the shopping complex as the child's mother came hurriedly down to the two.

"Thank you so much," she whispered as the young woman carefully handed the frightened child to her.

He saw the mother briskly head up the motionless escalator and his acute hearing picked up the voice of the mall manager's apology and suggestion of taking the elevator through the excited murmurs of shoppers. But for some reason, his mind wasn't focusing on his surroundings. It was focused on his hands, which were holding onto the woman. He couldn't help but notice that she had a lovely scent and he would have been lying if he had said he didn't enjoy warmth of her body .

"You can let me down now."

He looked down and saw her smiling up at him. She had a beautiful smile.

He was emotionless to the very end from the moment he caught her in his arms and to the second he lowered her feet down. She smiled at him once more. A smile that was full of gratitude...but nothing else.

"Thank you."

She had a sweet voice. He merely nodded. She flashed him another smile for the last time and headed up the motionless escalator like the rest.

He stood there motionless until Kouga finally came up behind him with a grin playing on his face.

"Looks like our dear Fluffykins fell for pretty woman."

His grin was soon wiped off of his face when Sesshomaru looked down at him with a menacing glint in his eyes.

"Uh...Let's get going." Kouga gave him a push and the two headed up the steps while Kouga cursed loudly about uselessly long escalators.

And then he met her again...In the same mall, on the same day when he was in a bloody state, Kouga no where to be seen, lying in a mess of shattered glass.

* * *

_Bzzzzz..._

He cracked open an eye when he heard his cell phone vibrate under his jeans, which had been thrown onto the floor the previous night, indicating that someone was calling him.

He was planning to ignore it, so he wouldn't wake Rin up while trying to get it, but he figured it was too late when she shifted in his lap.

"Go get it." She whispered into his skin, her eyes still closed.

"It's not important."

She opened her eyes. "It could be your father."

He was going to say that he couldn't care less, but he knew it was pointless to argue with her. She pecked him on the forehead and he let out a irritated growl as she got to her feet and headed for the bathroom. He got up and looked at the constantly buzzing phone. He let out another growl when he saw the caller ID.

He pressed the call button.

"Fluffy!"

Kouga's loud yells made him wince inwardly, due to his sensitive ears.

"Why the hell didn't you tell me you were getting married?" His excited voice still needed to be lowered down a notch. "Did you really need to make me hear it from your mutt brother? It's with Rin right? The hot nurse with the cute ass? You're one lucky dog Sesshomaru Koizu. So! Am I going to be your best man or what?"

Sesshomaru merely stared at the phone in his hand. He had picked up every single word Kouga had said and his heart tightened with every syllable. He turned his gaze to the closed bathroom door, nervous that Rin had heard Kouga(which was not very difficult), and couldn't decide whether he should be relieved or not when he heard the shower being turned on. He replaced the phone to his ear once he was sure Kouga's adrenaline level was back to normal.

"We'll talk about this later, Kouga."

He hung up the phone and separated the battery from the device. Carelessly throwing them onto the floor, he headed for the bathroom.

* * *

**>>Kouga>>**

I looked at the cordless phone in my hand, my eyes narrowed in irritation.

Humph...He didn't need to hang up like that did he? As his best friend I have every right to congratulate him! Do all grooms do that? Hang up on their best friends when they call to congratulate him?

Was he embarrassed? An image of him blushing red popped into my mind.

...Nah, that really doesn't go with him.

I tossed the phone onto the chair(hit the leg) and looked behind me. I couldn't get a good view from the bed and I really didn't want to get out just to see if the bathroom door is closed, but I couldn't detect her scent near. Probably still taking a shower.

I quickly turned my gaze to the nightstand and quietly opened the drawer. After digging in it for a good full minute, I finally found what I was looking for. Camel. Not the best, but try being a chainsmoker who hadn't smoked in three months and you'll appreciate a pack of damp Camel.

I placed one in my mouth and lit it, enjoying the spicy aroma of smoke. I was in pure heaven. Not as blissful as the previous night I spent with my little vixen...But pretty close.

I let out a content sigh, thinking I was the luckiest guy alive.

...For a second. As soon as I inhaled the second time, a hand snatched my precious stick away from my mouth and stubbed it in the ash tray.

"Aw...Ayame..." I looked up at her with a weak smile on my face. I was so busted.

She was standing with a scowl on her face(I got to say, a smile goes much better with her), dressed in only a towel. Her flaming red hair was damp from her morning wash and her brilliant green eyes were glaring down at me. I was busted, but hey, I would rather be busted by a hot chick than my mother.

"Kouga Tawamura," she snapped, "Do you realize that this roll of paper stuffed with tobacco can-"

"-Make my lungs as black as my hair. Yeah, I know baby." I raised my torso from the pillows. "But come on...I think I made an improvement throughout the last three months...I need a reward." I couldn't help eyeing her legs as I wrapped my arms around her waist. She had a sexy pair of legs and the towel I snagged from the hotel last week stopped at her mid-thigh.

...If it was just a little bit shorter.

She got what I meant and I could just imagine her blushing deep red. She stroked my hair and massaged my skull in the MOST relaxing way. I groaned and closed my eyes, burying my face in the towel. Her fingers ran through the roots of my black hair and pleasing memories of the previous night we shared together floated into my mind. Her fingers suddenly left my hair and I could hear her reaching for something on the nightstand. I finally cracked open an eye to see a stick of gum in front of my face.

"Your reward." She flashed me that seductive smile of hers.

"Oh, come on, Ayame..." I pulled her into the bed with me. I ripped off the towel and threw it onto the floor to let it join with the pile of our clothes we wore the previous night. "Have you seen the cool guys in mystery movies chew gum? You always see them smoking."

"Uh-huh." She kissed me on my right temple. "But you don't see attractive red heads kissing them do you?"

"No. But attractive blondes do."

She let out a laugh. It always made me feel smug when I see her laugh.

"You know what I mean."

"I might if we get back to what we were doing before that damn clock rang." I nuzzled her nose.

"Oh, right!" She raised her upper body to look down at me with a gorgeous smile on her face. "You were telling me how you found the Shikon no Tama."

"Uh...That too...But the thing we did after that."

"Uh-uh. You're going to tell me what happened," she giggled, "Or you won't get anything from me."

"Fine..." I pulled her down again with a small scowl. "If you're more interested in some purple marble than me, fine."

"You got that right, mister." She kissed me on the nose and plopped down to my side again.

"So...Where was I?"

"You dragged your pot cactus out in the mountains in the dead of the night..."

"Oh yeah... And then..." I suddenly felt really stupid telling her this. "Do you really want to know? I mean, didn't you read it in the papers?"

"I did. But I want to hear it personally from you."

"Fine... The ground collapsed beneath my feet and I found myself in a cave. And ta-dah. I found the little sucker."

She looked at me with wide eyes and then burst into breathless laughs. I scowled. I could feel the blush creeping up my cheeks.

"Now I **really** want to know what they said in the papers..." I muttered. "I never even bothered to look at them because of all those demented pictures of me they took..."

"Don't worry," she gasped out between laughs, "They put it into a much more dramatic story."

"Oh?"

"They said you were secretly searching for it for a decade even while you were working on your books and you generously contributed it to a national museum without any price. Well, most of them did."

"True about the national museum part."

"How did you choose which museum to donate to?"

"Um...Do I have to tell you this one too?"

Her eager eyes told me yes.

"Ok fine...It was the nearest museum from my place."

She got into a fit of giggles again. I was getting a little uncomfortable(I hate being laughed at) until she kissed me on the lips.

"That's why I love you so much Kouga," she whispered, "Simple minded, but still comfortable to be with."

"I"ll take that as a compliment." I licked the tip of her nose.

She blushed and started fiddling with my hair. "So...Did anyone else call you? No bribes?"

I knew she was only saying it because it just popped into her mind, but I couldn't help narrowing my eyes when I heard the word 'bribe'.

I think it's a disgusting word, a cowardly way of obtaining what one wanted. Such offers were given out from wusses to spineless bastards. And an anonymous worm had once offered it to me. Which meant he thought I**was** a spineless bastard.

"Yeah...A lot of bribery... The last one being a big one by this anonymous guy."

"Big one? How much did he offer?"

"Five hundred thousand...US."

"You didn't take it did you?" She looked at me with those eyes my mother used to give me whenever I raided the cookie jar(did in the past and still do now).

"No, of course not! I generously donated it to a national museum, remember!"

"Yes, I remember," she chuckled as she stoked my hair, " I know you're not as low to accept such things."

"Hn..." I kissed her on the nose while I inwardly smacked myself for making that 'hn' sound. Fluffy always used the 'hn' sound whenever he was doubtful or not interested and it seemed like I got it from him.

"But I really can't get that bastard off my mind..." I muttered.

"Who?"

"Huh? What?"

She raised her eyebrow at me. "You said that you couldn't get someone off your mind."

"Did you hear that? I think I heard my conscience just yell at me to get ready for the interview I have this noon!" I jumped out of bed and ran into the bathroom, mentally smacking myself again for talking to myself out loud. Did all authors go through this stage? When they just can't help but to speak outloud to themselves?

"And you'll soon hear me yell once you get out of that room, mister!" I heard her laugh and head for the closet to dress.

I closed the door and looked at the mirror.

...Hey, gorgeous.

I shook my head. Gorgeous my ass. My hair was disheveled, dark circles were visible underneath my eyes, and was it the lights or did I look paler than usual?

Maybe I was being really stupid to take his threat seriously... Was I? Nothing happened...yet.

I growled as I glared at the mirror. That...bastard. If he thought he could hurt Ayame, no, if he thought he could even **think** of hurting Ayame and get away with it...He was **so** wrong.

But I couldn't help feeling weak inside as I leaned on the tile wall and slowly slid down until I was slumped onto it.

I closed my eyes and tried to remember the day...

The day when I got the call from him.

* * *

**Hey**, this chap came out a little earlier than I thought! I got all the story planned out, needs a little tidying around the corners, so this story is officially on the roll! Thank you so much for the reviews, they were what stimulated me to update it faster than I really planned. Hope you enjoyed this chapter! Review for me please-! 

**Little preview:** Flashback of the little phonecall Kouga got, a little lime planned, and maybe a little bit about the contract!


	3. Chapter 3

**Crisscross**

**Chapter Three**

**>>Kouga>>**

But I couldn't help feeling weak inside as I leaned on the tile wall and slowly slid down until I was slumped onto it.

I closed my eyes and tried to remember the day...

The day when I got the call from him.

* * *

_Ring... Ring..._

I threw the pen in my hand at the laptop screen in frustration. The ink leaked and left smudges on the screen and a small dent. I growled and cursed Miroku for getting me such a crappy writing utensil. The blasted phone was still ringing.

I swear, I would've busted that communication device and ripped the cords into bits if it wasn't for my perverted editor. That damnlech told me that he was going to give me a call and the only calls I were getting were from two kinds of people: people who are after the Shikon no Tama and people who just wanted to waste their time asking me stupid questions about it.

"If that isn't you Miroku, you will soon find yourself unable to leave a heir in this world," I growled.

I picked up the phone and let out an hello through clenched teeth for the upteenth time of the day.

"Eh...Hello?"

...Looks like Miroku is going to lose his testicles after all.

"Yes, this is Kouga Tawamura speaking..." I nonchalantly spoke in a normal tone. I was actually imitating Sesshomaru's manner of speaking 'cause people seemed to hang up quickly whenever he spoke like this.

"Eh..."

"Cut with the 'eh's."

"Eh... I have an offer to make..."

"Yes, I get the point. You want to talk about the Shikon no Tama, is that right?"

"Is that the purple marble?"

Purple marble? Not the exact word to describe it, but he seemed much more comfortable to speak to compared to all the other arrogant jack asses who called me for the whole day. I swear that was the only reason I decided to talk with the nutcase.

"Yeah, the purple marble. You want it or what?"

"I think it will attract a lot of visitors...Would it?"

"Here's a little fact for you. I don't give a shit about the marble. I want to get it out of my hands as fast as possible without any messy business. Do you want it or not?"

"Eh..."

"I thought I told you to cut with the 'eh's," I growled through tightly clamped teeth.

"Eh..."

He's either doing that to annoy me or he's just a plain nutter. Maybe both.

"I'm willing to take it..."

"Great, but most important, who the hell are you?"

"Toutousai."

"Nice to know your name, Toutousai, but I still don't know who the hell you are."

"I'm a curator of a national museum."

"Yeah, that's great, but Tokyo itself is large as it can get and I need to know where your museum is." I yanked a few tissues out of the tissue box and started wiping the laptopscreen while constantly getting the thought that I was trying to talk to a kindergartener.

"Eh...It's in the Takashimaya Mall."

"The one on Yajawa street?" I tossed the dirty mass of tissue into the trash can and yanked the map where I wrote notes on from a shelf.

"Yep."

I unfolded the map with a little difficulty with one hand and stared at it for a minute, trying to read my ineligible handwriting that were crammed onto streets and tiny buildings. But I could tell that Yajawa street was the closest from my place compared to all the other museums that called me. I finally gave up and turned my attention back to the phone.

"Congratulations 'cause I'm going to give the little purple marble to you," I threw the map into the trash can as well, but missed.

"Eh?"

"I...am...going...to...give...the...Shikon...no... Tama...to...you..." I stressed each word just in case he still didn't catch what I was saying.

"Oh? I heard that you weren't willing to sell it..."

"Who ever said I was going to sell it? No, I'm giving this to you for free, so everyone in Japan can view it with the price of the admission ticket. It's yours now, I don't want anything to do with it."

"Oh? Well...Eh...Do you like milkshakes?"

"...Yes."

"Would you like one?"

"Um...Sure?"

"Then could you deliver it for me?"

I suddenly regretted for choosing this git out of all the other fruitcakes I had to deal with. All the others offered to send someone, so I didn't need to find them personally, and here this senile geezer was asking me if I would deliver it to him at the price of a milkshake. And for those who are wondering why I turned down those offers with the personal delivery boys, I didn't want to risk anything. Delivery boy can get attacked, murdered, or whatever and the priceless artifact could be lost. Then I would have to contact the police, get involved in a search party, and a lot of other shit.

This Totoshu, or whatever his name was, was testing my patience really badly.

But hey... I like milkshakes and Yajawa Street was actually only a five minute walk from my place.

"You got it."

"Oh? Eh...When can you come?"

"Next Friday."

"That would be good...What do you call the purple marble again?"

"Shikon no Tama."

"Perhaps Kaede will help me set it up...Well, goodbye."

And then I heard the dial tone. I smirked as I hung up the phone. This would be on the headlines as well. 'Rare artifact given to lunatic'.

I chuckled. Now with that off my shoulders all that was left to do was...Oh, yeah. Remove my editor's testicles.

No sooner did the phone ring after I got onto my chair. I glared at the ringing device.

I could have ignored it.

I should have ignored it.

But I didn't. I stupidly listened to my conscience that was telling me that this phonecall was important. And as important as it was, it was the most disturbing one I ever recieved in my life.

I picked up the phone.

"Hello?"

"Good evening, Mr. Tawamura." A cold voice, as cold as Sesshomaru's in fact, reached my ears. He had a smooth tone and I couldn't help but to imagine him to be one of those mysterious guys sitting in fancy armchairs with his face in the shadows.

"If you're calling about the purple marble, forget it 'cause it's already donated."

"Is that how you call the most valuable piece of history ever found in Japan, Mr. Tawamura?" I could detect mockery in his voice.

"And is this how you waste your time? By calling people and sneering at them?"

He chuckled. He was ticking me off more than dear old Tootoot...Or Toto...Or whatever his name was. He suddenly stopped and spoke in that cool manner again.

"I will offer you two hundred thousand."

"What?"

"I am offering you two hundred thousand US dollars for the so called "purple marble" you carry."

"I. Don't. Take. Bribes." I managed to growl through clenched teeth. Like I said, I simply detested people like him. People who use their money in the dirtiest way possible. Giving bribes.

"It's not a bribe, Mr. Tawamura," he said, "It's in return for the artifact. A trade."

"Why the hell do you want it?"

"I own a collection of gems."

"You're offering me two hundred thousand, just so you can add a little purple to your shiny little rock collection?"

"Do you want a higher price?"

"Like I said Mr..." I waited for him to fill me with his name, but he said nothing. "I don't take bribes. And I'm not some kind of salesman. Besides, it's already taken."

"You really think it's wise to trust a mad old man with such a priceless artifact?"

"...I think it's smarter than giving it to some fuckin' stalker who've been taping my phone for the last three days."

There was a short moment of silence. He must've been wondering how I ever found out. He finally let out a small laugh.

"I see you have noticed. Never imagined someone like you was familiar to such devices."

"I have contact with other people who are. I'm not selling the Shikon no Tama. And that's final." I was about to hang up when I heard his threatening tone.

"I'm offering you three hundred thousand."

"Go kiss someone else's ass."

"Four hundred thousand, Mr. Tawamura. All in cash."

"Forget it."

"I know your residence Mr. Tawamura," he seemed to hiss through the phone, "You're background, family, and friends."

"That's great to know but here's a piece of information for you," I growled, "I have no family and very few friends, who are capable of ripping your head off if you even try to lay a finger on them."

"Five hundred thousand. It's my final offer."

"And "no" is my final word."

"I know where you're headed for, Mr. Tawamura. You would be jeopardizing your life if you turn down my offer. I have many **friends **at my side. It would be wise to think about your answer, Mr Tawamura or a certain..._Delicate_ bird can slip and plummet right over your head aproximately next Friday."

Delicate bird? What the fuck?

"Like I give a shit." I sneered.

There was a pause over the line, but I could hear the quiet deep breathes of frustration.

"Very well." The cold tone was replaced by a snide voice. "I guess you can't fool blood, Mr. Shoto. You're very stubborn like your father."

I stiffened instantly at the name he had addressed me in. How the hell did he find out?

"...I go by my mother's maiden name," I growled quietly, "And the name's Tawamura"

"I guess I hit the wrong button, didn't I?" He sneered.

I said nothing.

"Are you like your father, Mr. Shoto? Do you get hungry for little girls?" His voice grew softer. "Would you murder your own wife one day and leave your son at a-"

"Don't you ever call me back you son of a bitch." I could feel my eyes turn blood red. "The next time you do, you will soon find your head on a stake, roasting on an open fire right in the middle of Tokyo with an apple stuffed into the opening of your intestines. YOU GOT THAT YOU SICK ASSHOLE?"

I threw the phone at the wall and it immediately cracked into three clean pieces. It would be impossible to repair it, but I didn't give a shit right now.

I found myself taking in ragged breaths for the next five minutes or so, glaring at the now busted device. I grabbed my cell and punched a few numbers.

"Hello?"

"Ginta, do me a favor. Could you take a look at my phone? Give me all the numbersof the people who called me today and I need background information, every little fucking detail of the last caller."

"Kouga? Oh, wait. The calls for today huh?"I heard shuffling in the background. "I could do that, but you should know this could get me into a deep pile of shit when I'm caught."

"So you'll do it?"

"It's not like you'll take no for an answer. When do you need it?"

"Anytime but now."

"I'll call once I get my hands on it."

"Thanks."

I hung up and looked at the mess I made on the laptop and decided to call it a day as I climbed into the bed to pass out in thirty seconds flat.

* * *

I never heard from the asshole the following day nor the next. I thanked all Kamis I knew who were above me, but I take all my words of gratitude back. 

Because the bastard gave me a second call, which was as unpleasant as the last...

"Kouga?"

I cracked open an eye to see Ayame kneeling next to me, her brows crouched in concern.

"Aw, aren't you going to wear your nurse uniform?" I whined as I looked disapprovingly at her outfit made of a skirt and a simple tee-shirt.

"Are you all right?" She completely ignored my comment of her fashion and stroked my forehead free of black bangs. "You don't look too well, Kouga. Is something wrong?"

Usually, I would have let out a laugh and tell her not to worry. Usually, I would kiss her on the nose and tell her to get going. Usually, I would distract her by saying something ridiculous.

But I couldn't do it. His words were floating inside my head and I couldn't get it out of my mind.

_I will get her Mr. Shoto. Whether you like it or not._

I looked into her worried eyes for a moment, wondering if I should tell her everything.

If I was smart, I would have told her everything.

But I wasn't.

I smiled like an idiot and kissed her on the forehead.

"Be careful Ayame."

She blinked a few times then smiled back at me, kissed me goodbye, and headed out the door.

* * *

>>> 

Rin swore to herself to be optimistic about the whole marriage, but when she heard Kouga's ecstatic voice asking him about it, she couldn't help but to wince slightly when she felt the a sharp pain inside of her. She kept telling herself that this whole thing wasn't his choice, wasn't his idea, but just the thought of him leaving her was unbelievably painful. Maybe it was a mistake not to tell anyone about their relationship...The only people who knew about the two of them were Kouga and Ayame...And recently, Sesshomaru's father, Inutashio. But no one else. For others, he was the president of a booming industryof thirty-two and she an attractive nurse at the Tokyo hospital of twenty-five who had never met each other for their entire lives.

She couldn't hear what he said to Kouga and an uncomfortable silence took place. Not that she wanted to hear.

She quickly shed out of her robe and slid into the shower stall, reaching for the faucet. Anything to break the horrible stillness.

Her hair was soon drenched from the warm water and droplets started trailing down her face. She tilted her head upwards to receive full blast of the luke-warm water. She closed her eyes and stood there, under the protective spray, slipping into the painful but blissful memories of their first encounter.

_She could feel warm, slick liquid seeping into her clothing._

_Crimson blood._

_But not hers._

_She could feel something pressing hard on her body. She had opened her eyes to see blood...And broken pieces of glass. Not to mention a motionless body slumped over her._

_Long strands of silver hair._

_But not hers._

_She could hear the people screaming out of control and hurried footsteps._

_A limp arm that was dangling from a shoulder, only connected with a few strands of muscle and tissue._

_But not hers._

The creak of the door announced his presence and brought her back to the spiteful reality world. She didn't turn around, but she could feel his gaze moving around her body. Searching her neck. Trailing down her back. Lingering on her hips. She blushed a deep hue of crimson, knowing that his keen sense of smell would have detected her arousal from the moment he had opened the door.

'No...We can't keep this up anymore!'

She turned around, turning the water off as she did, but became quite startled when she found him inside the shower stall as well, looking down at her with his emotionless golden orbs.

"Sesshomaru...We both weren't thinking clearly last night," she mumbled as she tried to push him back, "You've got to go back and-"

Her words were drowned out and her eyes turned wide as his lips simply crashed down on hers. His arms immediately found their place, his left snaking a round her waist and his right supporting her back. He pushed her deeper into the stall, a little rougher than he had intended, and continued his desperate assault.

She did not respond for a moment, mostly in shock, but she soon tilted her head sideways, prying her lips from his.

"Sesshomaru, stop!" she cried out as she tried to push him back, "Do you even know what you're doing? What this can do to your whole reputation?"

He didn't pay any attention. He felt something tugging at the back of his mind, the fact that she had rejected him for the first time, but his desire for her drove the thought out of his mind. He silenced her by attacking her swollen lips again.

His hands clutched onto her, trying to keep her as close as possible while his mouth traced her jawbone and up to her ear. Somehow along the way with her futile struggles and his hurried actions, the faucet was pushed and a pleasing warmth engulfed the two as the water rained upon them.

"Sesshomaru..." she weakly whispered, "Please...Stop..."

He slowly removed his lips from her ear and pulled back to see a teary pair of cinnamon eyes looking back at him. Her tears rolled down her cheeks, mixing with the warm trickles of water.

He felt a pang of guilt as he saw the hurt expression on her face. Reality was finally sinking into him. With the media and all, if anyone found out about their relationship, there would be gossip. Society would scorn at Rin, calling her a whore for seducing a married man, and society would scold him for adultery, calling him a monster.

Society was a blind man, who could only see the ethically wrong situations. Not bothering to care to learn about the other side of the story.

And to society, marking another woman when one already had a spouse, was ethically wrong.

She knew this. Rin knew this. She knew that he would only be digging his grave with every second he chose to stay with her. She was trying to stop him from reaching a dead end by rejecting him, pushing him away even when her heart ached with every futile shove. The shower wasn't being much of a help either. The water merely reminded her of the stormy nights...Like last night.

He pushed her against the wall as his left hand lowered itself down to the junction of her legs and his fingers lingered near her sensitive folds, slowly stroking them, sending shivers down her spine. He could hear her take in a sharp breath, panting slowly to strain from reacting to his touches. He languidly stroked her inner thigh and leaned closer.

"Do you truly want me to leave?" he whispered onto her lips.

Her eyes seemed to widened at his question. She lowered her eyes to the floor, ashamed of hesitating when she clearly knew the morally right answer. He lowered his face closer to hers, their noses only a centimeter away.

Questioning golden orbs met her wavering cinnamon eyes and right then he knew her answer. He closed the last short distance between them, his mouth crashing onto her lips. Her arms hesitatingly wrapped themselves around his neck, pulling him downwards toward her, and her right leg lifted slightly, thrusting herselfinto his groin. A small content groan escaped his mouth as his tongue ferociously attacked hers, leaving them both breathless by the second. He shifted his arms to lift her off the floor and gently pushed her against the wall, making her stand on her tiptoes. He removed his lips from her gasping mouth and started a new assault on the crook of her neck.

She let out a small moan as he grazed her skin with his teeth. She held onto him tightly, shivering from arousal as his left fingers toyed with her nub. Her nipples hardened to his soft touches and she felt the slick juices running quickly down her legs due to the many trickles of water. He slowly inserted a finger, leisurely pushing it deeper with every moan she let out. She let out a small cry of his name as she felt her muscles contracting his fingers, which only stimulated him even more. He gently bit onto her neck, leaving a red mark, and moved onto her breasts.

Sucking onto her erect nipple, he felt her lips pressing onto his forehead, sending a warm sensation down his spine. He gazed up into the pair of light brown eyes. He deliberately cornered her under the sprays of a running shower. Both of them were panting quietly from arousal and excitement while they merely stared into the other's eyes, bringing a heated eye contact to life. He bent down slightly to let his mouth linger just above her swollen lips, his ragged breath dancing on her skin.

He leaned closer.

And the doorbell rang.

The loud sound of the bell brought both lovers out of their daze. He immediately growled menacingly and hugged her small form tightly, determined to not let her leave so easily. She too was planning on ignoring the person outside, but the loud voice she heard immediately brought her mind out of the cloudy sensation it was floating in.

"Rin? Come on, girl! We're going to be late!"

She immediately recognized the excited voice of her fellow co-worker and friend, Sango Mamoru. Reality seemed to slap her in theface as she remembered why Sango was there. Sango had started picking her up so they could go to work together ever since the incident took place between the couple last month.

He had also recognized Sango's voice and noticed that Rin had suddenly stiffened inside his embrace. A sure sign that she was about to leave him.

"Sesshomaru..." She pushed him away, trying to wiggle her way out as her face turned into a light shade of red from shame and embarrassment of falling for him again . "Sango's here...I've got to get to the hospital..."

"Rin." He grabbed her wrists as his usually emotionless golden eyes watched her intensely. "I won't be able to see you again."

She understood why he was saying this. The loud hollering of Sango's voice was already becoming distant to her. She clearly knew that he was asking her if she was still willing to let him go. She could ignore Sango and spend at least another last hour with him. Or put the end to the painful inner conflicts she was going through between her wants and her conscience.

She answered him by giving a pained look and grabbing a towel. She pulled herself out of his grip and left the bathroom, slamming the door behind her. She leaned onto it, already regretting what she had donestraining to force back the tears that were already beginning to flow.

"Rin! Are you there?"

"Coming!"

She quickly wiped her tears while wrapping herself with the towel and opened the door slightly to see Sango giving her a small scowl.

"Do you know what time it is Rin? It's nine thirty already and here you are taking your morning shower!"

"Sorry... I- I had things... Going on..."

"Wait...Rin, are you all right?"Sango asked as she looked at her friend in concern."You look a little red- holy shit! What's wrong with your neck?"

"Wha-? Oh, the red marks?" Rin nervously asked as she tried her best to cover them.

"Yes! The red marks!" Sango gave her an accusing look.

"It's... sores."

"And the blue moon near your shoulder blade? What is that?"

"Um...Tattoo? But that's not important right now," Rin hurriedly added, "Um, I'll be right out Sango, I'm really sorry."

"You better be lady!" Sango laughed. "It's the big day! I can't wait for you to meet my old pal."

"Huh?"

Sango frowned. "God, what's up with you, Rin? You're usually on track...Remember the friend I told you about?"

"Oh, the one studying to become a designer?"

"There we go! Yup, that's her. She's coming to the hospital today and I really want you to meet her."

"Yes, that would be nice," Rin said half-mindedly as she nervously glanced behind her, "Could you wait downstairs, Sango? I have to-"

A loud crash from the bathroom was heard, startling Sango and causing a new gush of tears to erupt from Rin.

"What the hell? Rin, is there someone abusive in there?" Sango peeped over her friend's head to look inside the building. "You know I have a black belt in taekwando and I'm not afraid to use it-"

She immediately stopped in mid-sentence when she saw Rin quietly crying.

"Rin? What's wrong? Why-"

"Sango," she whispered quietly as tears rolled down her cheeks, "Could you give me a minute please?"

"I..." SangoMamoru just stared helplessly at her friend, wondering what was the cause of her sudden tears. "Um...All right... I'll be at the parking lot..."

With that she quickly left, still puzzled, as Rin shut the door with a small slam. She passed the bathroom door as she headed for her closet. She knew Sango would be waiting for her down at the parking lot...But nevertheless she leaned onto the door and let her body slide down helplessly. She just sat there, leaning on the bathroom door, her tears flowing down her cheeks like the trickles of rain of the wet April morning.

* * *

He could hear the two women's conversation without even trying behind the closed door. Sango was asking Rin something about red marks. Probably caused from his teeth. Then he heard Rin making up lies to cover it up. She was trying to hide him, trying to deny that she had anything to do with him. And that was what triggered him off. 

He walked out of the shower and reached for a bottle of cologne on the counter.

Summerset.

Rin had said that it smelled nice and that was when he had learned that she preferred mild, refreshing aromas over the strong stinging smells of men's perfume. He had made no comment, but Inuyasha found nothing else but the clear bottles with the bold black writing that said Summerset in his bathroom the next day. It was something that they both liked, which was not very easy to find, due to the severe difference between her friendly, warm personality and his stoic, cold one.

He looked at the bottle for a moment or so, vaguely listening to the conversation outside about some friend of Sango's. Then he swung the bottle across the room.

The bottle of cologne crashed into the tile wall, shattering into numerous pieces of glass, the liquid spillingonto the floor.

"What was that?"

He heard Sango ranting on again and Rin trying to send her away. He then caught the salty scent of her tears. He immediately regretted what he had just done.

He had never thought that he would ever show interest in a female, let alone fall in love. But he did. He had never imagined in his wildest dreams that he would fall for a human. The race that was the main cause of his mother's death and his father's fatal weakness. But he did.

He had spent two heavenly years with his love, straining to keep their relationship unknown from unnecessary people. Which practically meant everyone. And that was exactly what they tried to accomplish, a secret relationship without anyone acknowledging it, with the exception of three people. And they had succeeded for two years.

For what?

He felt so pathetic. Imbecillic beyond words. What was he even planning to do with their relationship anyways? If he was going to keep her secret from others, what was the whole point in the end? It was far too late to bring the subject up to matter, he was frustrated, she was confused. Everything was going wrong.

He heard the door clicking shut. He picked up his clothes from the closed toilet lid, exactly where Rin had put them the previous night, and began to dress.

His hand was on the doorknob when he noticed the small shadow in front of the small crack underneath the door and heard the unmistakable sorrowful sobs of Rin. He let his hand fall limplyto his side as he turned around and gently slumped onto the floor, leaning onto the door.

The digital alarm clock on the bedside table switched its number to announce the time as 9:37 as both lovers leaned onto the same door, one crying for the hard love they were going through and one letting out a sigh of frustration for the complicated situations he had gotten themselves into.

* * *

Inutashio Koizu had woken up next to his wife when his watch showed the current time as 5:09 AM. He blinked his eyes, wondering why he had dreamed of his previous deceased wife, and looked at his spouse snuggled close to his chest. Her dark brown hair was neatly flowing behind her back and the steady rise and fall of her chest told him that she was resting peacefully. He smiled slightly as he gently stroked her hair. Next week was to be her fifty-sixth birthday. But her appearance was of a young woman in her late twenties, thanks to the small amount of demon blood that had started to flow in her body when she had first mated with her husband. 

The mating ritual of a demon was fairly simple. The male demon would simply claim his woman on the first night of mating season by biting near her shoulder blades to leave a mark of claim. As their bodies join to one, a fair amount of demon blood is inserted into the female along with the male gamete. The blood will kick in, taking effect after three days. When this mating ritual takes place between two demons, the extra blood would merely help to fertilize the egg. Not a big importance. But when mating with a human, the blood was essential, for it was what that gave humans a great increase in life span.

He carefully slipped out of the bed, tucking his sleeping wife under the cozy blankets, and headed downstairs. The large penthouse was still and quiet, the only light in the house being the small rays of sunlight slipping into the house between the closed curtains. He stopped at his youngest son's bedroom door. His acute hearing picked up his steady breathes¡¦And the sounds of his soon daughter-in-law. The sharp scent that leaked out of the room told him that they had a rather active night.

He couldn't help but to let out a small sigh. He knew that the girl, Kagome, was with his youngest son. He had known that she was the miko's granddaughter from the moment she told him of her residence. The irony. Fate was fooling around with him. Of all the billions of women around the world, his youngest son fell in love with the daughter that was already bound to his older brother. And as for Sesshomaru... He had never imagined that his stoic son would ever get engaged in a serious relationship, but he was certainly proved wrong when he found pictures of the young woman on his last and first visit to his son's house.

His usually strong footsteps were meekly making small slapping sounds on the marble floor. He reached the stairs, but the opened door of his eldest son's bedroom caught his attention. He paused at the staircase, but passed it and entered the room.

The room was white. No smudges, no fingerprints, no mud. The wall was speck and clean. Different from Inuyasha's walls, which were not visible under the numerous posters taped all over with few of Kagome's drawing of new designs. The single bed was made, a perfectly fluffed white pillow laying on the clean covers. A sign that the last time he slept there was nearly a decade ago, which was quite true. A large window on the west wall, a desk, and a bedside table. That was all. It was more like a guest room now than Sesshomaru's.

He turned to exit, when asingle picture frame on the bedside tablecaught his eye. He noticed that unlike the other picture frames in the room, this frame actually had a photo inside. The usually stern golden eyes softened as he reached out for the frame to look more carefully at the picture.

There in the simple frame made out of fine wood, was a laughing woman. Her unusual light blue hair and pointed ears showed that she was a demon and the small crescent moon on her forehead showed that she was a rare kind even among her almost extinct race. Her eyes were closed in the picture, but he clearly remembered that it was her pair of startling purple eyes that caught his attention in the first place.

The woman was laughing so dearly in the picture, it was almost too hard to believe that her fate was to meet death just around the corner.

_Hollow, empty eyes, staring back at him._

No...

_Blood trailing down from her skull._

No...

_His wife's blood all over his son's body._

No...

_His son staring back at him, his eyes equally empty as his dead mother._

No...

_Him just staring at his son helplessly as he mouthed the most spiteful words that stabbed his heart._

No...!

_"I killed her, Father."_

**No!**

"Inutashio?"

Wavering golden eyes sharply looked to his right as his hand started shaking slightly. He saw his wife's concerned face and immediately everything came back to him. He looked at the frame in his hand once more, noticing that he had crushed the glass so hard that it broke, and hastily placed it onto the bed stand.

"Are you all right?"

"Yes..." He gave her a weak smile. "Did I wake you, dear?"

"No..." She caressed his cold cheek with her hand. Her eyes softened as she wrapped her arms around his waist to give him a warm embrace. "Do you still miss her?"

He smiled and returned her embrace. This was what he loved the most about Izayoi. She was thoughtful. Caring. Understanding. She was exactly the person he needed comfort from after secluding himself for somewhat over a year.

"Yes. Sometimes I do..." He kissed her on the forehead. "But remember, love. You're the only reason I live for. So don't leave me."

Izayoi smiled back and pecked him on the nose. "Let's get back to bed for now. We have a lot before us."

She reached for the closed curtains and separated the drapes from each other, letting a weak ray of sunlight to encroach the darkness of the room. The light shined upon the picture, illuminating the frame with a soft golden color.

He looked at her questioningly and she smiled softly.

"She deserves to laugh in the sunlight."

He let out a small chuckle and pecked her on the forehead again.

"You're right, dear. She does."

* * *

**Uh...**A little late with updating, but my writer's block hit me during the middle of the chapter. I recently saw 'King Kong', wonderful movie, I love you Jack Peterson, but I don't see why King Kong can't live with Ann. Why does he have to die? 

Oh yeah. THANK YOU for all the reviewers, I love ya all. MeRrY ChRiStMaS(A little late on that holiday greeting) AND HaPpY NeW YeAr!

Double R. Read and Review please-!


	4. Chapter 4

**Crisscross**

**Chapter Four**

Kagome was in a good mood when she was coming out of the bank. She had just withdrew a fair amount of money she had been saving for the last three months. She was finally going to purchase that silk collection she's been wanting for the last few weeks and the little envelope with a thick wad of money in it was going to get it for her. She opened the door and stepped out into the lively streets of a busy Tokyo morning, when she felt something whiz by her and her hands were suddenly empty. She barely saw the blur of a red through the thick mob of people.

"Hey!"

She was about to run after the snatcher when someone else bumped into her. The two crashed down onto the hard concrete and Kagome could hear someone curse very loudly. She opened her eyes to see a man with silver hair over her, his dog ears twitching in anger and his teeth bared. He wasn't growling at her, but growling at the busy streets where the pickpocket had just took his leave. He was wearing casual clothes, baggy slacks and a simple button up shirt, but the ID card that had slipped out of the inner pocket of his leather jacket told her that he was part of a bureau.

"Could you mind getting off?" She asked, rather annoyed.

"Have you seen a red head go by? Bushy tail, fox demon, green eyes?" He asked in a snappy tone and when she didn't answer him at once, he let out an irritated growl. "What the hell is wrong with you, wench? You deaf?"

Her lips turned into a scowl as she pushed him off of her, her back aching from the crash.

"I would slap you for that, **officer**, but now that you're here, you can help me catch the thief who just snatched away my three months of earnings."

"No, I won't 'cause I'm after someone myself. "

He was about to run off, but Kagome had caught the back of his jacket and pulled him back angrily.

"You're a cop! You're supposed to help a citizen in need!" She shouted, earning the curious looks of pedestrians.

"I could arrest you for assaulting a police officer, woman!" He yelled back at her.

"I could make you lose your job once I report this at the station!"

"Like you know where I work for." He sneered.

She held up his ID card in her left hand, one eyebrow raised in mock surprise. "The Yajawa Police Department of Tokyo, Japan. Officer Inuyasha Koizu," she read out loud.

"How the hell did you get that, woman?" He swiped the card out of her hand.

"You dropped it when you practically hurled yourself at me! And for your information my name is not woman, its-"

"Are you going to shut up if I told you that I'll catch the bastard?"

He didn't even wait for her reply and simply heaved her over his shoulder and started running at an amazing speed.

"What the hell are you doing?" Kagome yelled from his shoulder, clutching onto his jacket for dear life, "Let me go!"

"I'll get to you once I catch the little brat I'm after! I'm just taking you with me so you won't go screaming your head off to my boss," he growled as he clumsily but accurately avoided the crowd.

"God damn!" He cursed as he stopped to sniff the air. "I can't catch his scent through this crowd."

A flash of red caught Kagome's eye and she saw the familiar green jacket the boy was wearing as he whipped into an alleyway.

"There! The little alleyway between-"

Her words were cut short when he took a sharp left and into the narrow alleyway.

"I'm not a sack of rice you throw over your shoulder," she grumbled in an irritated tone as he knocked down trashcans on the way, "You could at least carry me in a proper way if you're going to-"

"Yeah, I notice you're not a sack of rice, woman. Sacks of rice don't talk." But he carefully slid her onto his back, giving her a piggyback as he focused on the narrow track.

He raced after the teen who was just a few feet ahead of them, trying to lose the cop behind him by making rapid turns and knocking down obstacles but to no avail. He looked over his shoulder just in time to see the officer right in front of his nose before he was tackled roughly to the ground.

"Ha! You thought you were going to get away from me in one piece did you?"

The teen groaned as he heard the cop growl triumphantly and pin him onto the ground, making him lay prone with his face facing the dirt. He struggled, but the hands searching his jacket was not stopped. A violent tug at his pocket told him that the cop had confined his profit of the day.

"And what's this?" Inuyasha held up a brown envelope as he pocketed his regained wallet. "You snagged quite a lot didn't you?"

"Hey, that's mine!" Kagome exclaimed as she gingerly got off from Inuyasha's back, which she was miraculously still riding on even when he had tackled the teen. She took the envelope from his outstretched hand. He may have caught the thief only because he was actually his target, but the fact that a total stranger had carried her and even helped her rescue her stolen money was what made her see the short-tempered man in a different light. Besides, his appearance wasn't grotesque(quite the opposite) and his twitching dog ears were very tempting to pull.

"Thank you." She smiled at him with genuine gratitude.

"Keh."

A pale blush crept up Inuyasha's cheeks as he got off from the kid. He wanted to make a run for it, but Inuyasha was gripping his upper arm viciously.

"Kid, what's your name?" He growled.

"...Shippou." The child mumbled, his head bowed to the ground. He unconsciously pressed his cap tighter onto his head with his free hand.

He had thought that he was going to be paying a visit to the juvenile police department again when he felt the death grip release itself from his arm. He looked up to see the officer taking out a few bills from his pocket.

Inuyasha took off the cap to reveal a unruly mass of flaming red hair and placed the money onto Shippou's head. He then put the cap back onto its previous place, ramming the hat onto his head a little harder than necessary.

"Go. If I ever find you pick pocketing again, I'll personally cut off your little fingers," he snarled in a gentle tone.

Shippou hesitated, but when he saw the glaring eyes of the half-demon he gave a little bow of gratitude and ran out of the alleyway as a small blur. Inuyasha turned back to see her smiling at him with a gentle look in her eyes. She was an attractive woman, he noticed. Medium-height, soft eyes, ebony hair...And a rather well curved body. She held out a hand to him.

"Thank you, officer," she softly said, "My name's Kagome. Kagome Higurashi."

He stared at the smiling woman, taking in her friendly gesture, smirked, and took her hand.

"Inuyasha Koizu."

* * *

Kagome's amber eyes slowly opened as the grandfather clock in the living room let out ten strenuous rings to announce the current time, its powerful sounds echoing throughout the commodious penthouse. Usually, the residence would be full of action with the maids bustling around, Inuyasha looking for his ID card, which always seemed to magically disappear every morning, Kagome hurriedly packing up her sketches, Izayoi making phone calls, and Inutashio rushing to his car with a suitcase in hand. But today was Sunday. The maids were taking their day off for the weekends, Inutashio and Izayoi were sleeping in, and Kagome was in Inuyasha's room, in his bed, next to his side, and fiddling with a strand of his silver locks. 

Six days...

Funny. Her wedding was in six days and here she was dreaming about the day she had met her lover. She looked up to see Inuyasha's sleeping face. His eyes were closed, but his furry ears twitched ever so frequently as if trying to pick up the sounds of danger. It was those very ears that caught her attention in the first place. Besides the fact that he had literally ran into her at their first encounter.

The afflictive reality she was stuck in seemed to push her down into a deep swamp of tribulation. Getting wed to her lover's brother... How the hell was she supposed to live like that?

She was again silently moping for the miserable fate that awaited her when she felt a hand twirling with the ends of her own dark hair. She tilted her head up to see Inuyasha looking down at her, a playful glint in his golden eyes.

"Feel all right, Kagome?" He whispered in a quiet voice.

She looked up at him, a small smile playing on her lips and she wordlessly gave his twitching ears a gentle tug.

"Ow..." He removed her hands from his sensitive ears, smiling when he heard her giggling for once in a long time. "What was that for?"

"Nothing..." She gave him a placid smile and turned over, her back facing him.

"Oh, really?" He nuzzled her neck, earning another chuckle from her. His hands rubbed her smooth skin, scooping her body closer to his. They lay there for a while in a tranquil state, staring out into space when Kagome finally broke the silence.

"Inuyasha?"

"Yeah...?" He mumbled with his nose in her hair, his eyes closed.

"Why does Sesshomaru hate you so much?"

His eyes slowly opened to narrow themselves in displeasure. He looked towards where Kagome was intensely staring at, and saw the picture of him and his parents laughing in the gardens in a handsome frame of ebon wood.

Sesshomaru was not present.

"Where did that come from?" He tried to avoid the question, but Kagome thought otherwise.

"It's just that I noticed that all this time...How he's always not in the house...As if he's avoiding the whole family," she mumbled quietly, "Not to mention that look he gave you last night ...And he completely ignores your mother..."

Inuyasha sighed. He had known that she was bound to ask him any time now...

"I'll tell you, Kagome," he muttered as he turned her over to face him, "But I swear, you'll only feel pity for the bastard."

* * *

It was awkward. It was even more awkward than the time he had woken up to see her for the first time at the hospital. Rin had dressed and was ready to leave when Sesshomaru exited the bathroom. He put on his shoes in silence and she did the same. They walked out of the same door, but they walked through the hall and into the elevator in complete silence that nobody would have suspected them to be an acquaintance with each other. 

The doors started to close.

That was when Rin suddenly crossed the elevator and wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling him into a warm embrace. He dully stood there quite surprised by the sudden contact as she whispered next to his ear.

"I've never asked anything from you, Sesshomaru Koizu."

Yes, that was true. She was always so independent. He had always wanted her to be leaning on him, so that she would always come to him when in need, but she stood by herself until the very end.

"Correct me if I'm wrong, but as far as I can recall, I never asked anything from you."

He remained silent, pondering if he should surrender to the desire of returning her embrace or give her no response just out of spite for what happened this morning.

"But now I'm going to ask you a favor and I trust that you will do it for me."

Still he showed no response.

"Be nice to your wife."

This was something he had not been expecting. His golden eyes narrowed slightly.

"This marriage is also against her own will."

He felt her arms tighten around his neck.

"At least you're doing this for your mother, but she's merely yielding to this marriage because of some contract she didn't even know about."

His motionless arms slowly raised themselves.

"You would do it for me if you loved me, Sesshomaru."

His arms were hovering just centimeters off from her hips. A silent battle raged inside of him between his pride and his desire.

"Please...Care for her like you would for me."

His desire won the battle at her last words. His arms were about to tighten their hold on her waist.

But the elevator door silently slid open to reveal a slightly surprised man in a light purple dress, carrying a pot of flowers.

Rin immediately untangled her arms from him and quickly shifted to the other side of the elevator, her head bowed down. When she looked up again, her eyes were looking a little watery than before as the man cautiously stepped into the elevator. Sesshomaru had lowered his arms.

"Uh...Good morning, Rin?" The man nervously asked at the sight of her streaming eyes.

"Good morning, Jakotsu." She gave him a weak smile.

"Uh...Boyfriend?" Jakotsu asked as he gave the still impassive Sesshomaru a quick glance as he pressed the first floor of the elevator.

Sesshomaru was silently staring at a corner of the doors, but he felt something stir inside him when he heard Jakotsu's question. He waited for her answer.

Rin merely shook her head as she daintily wiped her tears onto the sleeves of her blouse. She knew Sesshomaru saw her doing so.

"Oh...Uh...Ok..." Jakotsu ended the conversation and a dreadful silence took its place in the elevator. Finally, there was a small sound of a bell and the doors slid open, letting Jakotsu escape the uncomfortable silence with a mumbled goodbye to Rin.

Rin briskly walked out of the elevator giving a small nod to the security guard at the front desk as a greeting and headed out the automatic glass doors. Sesshomaru followed. Once again the couple looked like two completely different stragners.

That is until he grabbed her wrist once she had exited the condo.

She whipped around, ready to push him away, when she felt the familiar warm lips covering her own.

She struggled once again, but his hands had already caught both of her wrists, his arms pulling her closer to him.

"Sesshomaru, stop..." She barely managed to whisper through choked sobs as his tongue lapped at her lips. "Stop..."

"Just once, Rin." He whispered onto her cheek, his grip on her wrists unconsciously tightening. "Just once..."

His lips found her mouth again and he found that she had granted his request. His tongue easily slipped into the warm cavern, rubbing onto the roof of her mouth,  
lining her white straight teeth, and meeting with her own hesitant tongue.

Their last kiss was sweet.

It was not intense.

Nor was it innocent.

It was simply a few moments of heaven as their tongues met in a slow motion.

It was simply a last request he had asked for.

It was simply another way of saying the last goodbye.

Ever so slowly did the two pairs of lips part, both lingering with the other with an air of remorse.

Ever so slowly did his hands release their grip, his arms falling limp to his sides.

Ever so slowly did she turn around, regret and sorrow swirling in a whirlpool inside of her, and headed for the parking lot in a brisker gait than before.

And that was the end between the two lovers as they both took a heavy step out of each other's lives.

* * *

**>>Kagome>>**

"I'll tell you, Kagome...But I swear, you'll only feel pity for the bastard."

I fidgeted a little in his arms, resting my head onto the pillow. I've never seen Inuyasha with such a serious look on his face before, but something told me that he was actually keen on telling me about it.

Pity? Like I would feel sympathetic for the arrogant jerk.

"You know that he's my half-brother, right?"

I nodded.

"Sesshomaru's mother was murdered."

The abrupt news surprised me. My eyes got wide as I stared at him.

"Dad wasn't exactly the jolly type like he is now..." Inuyasha muttered. "That's what I heard from others anyways. He was the cold, silent type. People were actually afraid of him because he was the Head of the Demons Department and all... Where do you think Sesshomaru got his attitude?"

I smiled faintly. Inuyasha was getting angry already just talking about him and it was quite amusing to see his ears twitching madly as he growled.

"Anyways... He met Sesshomaru's mother...A maid told me about her... She said that she was one of the kind... All friendly and nice...There's a picture of her in Sesshomaru's room. I think that's her. She was a moon demon. They're the rarest of the kind of all demons...Probably extinct by now...Considering that Sesshomaru's half dog demon."

He paused and looked down at me.

"Actually the whole story's rather depressing. You really want to hear it?"

I hesitated but silently nodded. He let out a sigh.

"Dad gradually started to change as he spent time with her. Became jubilant and all... And then Sesshomaru was born. But his mother's death was what brought him to life. She passed away from constant loss of blood the same hour he was born."

"Dad... He broke down. The maid said that he cried while clutching onto her dead body. He wouldn't leave her side for the next few days; not even to see his first son. And that's when he heard about your grandmother, Kagome."

"Life was hard back then for humans. Demons were considered as superiors and humans considered as dirt. Your grandmother may have been human, but she was a gifted priestess. Her powers were considered the best of all priests in Japan. She was known as a god in human form. That's why Dad went to her, carrying his wife's body up to the secluded shrine."

"Your grandmother wasn't keen on altering the fate of the woman. But she wasn't exactly in the position to argue with Dad. He was almost insane by that time and he was practically threatening her. And that was when... Your grandmother made the... Contract..."

I could feel his grip on my shoulder tighten.

"And so she tried reviving her...And succeeded. The contract was sealed and...Yeah."

He did not continue, but curiosity got the better of me.

"But what happened to her?" I whispered, "Where is she now?"

"...Dad went on a business trip to somewhere in Europe. Sesshomaru was young back then but he was as mature as a person in the late teens...Takes it after Dad was what Jaken said," he smirked faintly, "Dad told him to look after the office while he was absent. He was probably joking but the git took him seriously. Everything was well... There wasn't any shit going on while he was gone...Until the day he planned to come back..."

"Back at that time there were humans who tried to overthrow the demon society. They were planning on holding Sesshomaru as a hostage, so they lured him out into the secluded mountains near Dad's office. Jaken told me the story from here. He said that a report came in that there was some trouble with some demons near the woods and Sesshomaru went to settle it, the cocky idiot. His mother thought that there was something suspicious about the whole situation, so she went with him even though she was in a weak condition. She was suffering from this lung disease of some sort...Jaken got worried so he tagged along."

"Sesshomaru left her a good distance away from the peak... Probably thought she was safe there. He went up the mountain alone, but Jaken followed him. He said that they were ambushed a bit while later. That was when Sesshomaru first killed anyone in his life. He was outnumbered, but he had the upper hand of the battle. And then one of the assassinators got hold of his mother. He dragged her up where Sesshomaru could see her, pushed her to the very end of a precipice and threatened to push her off he wasn't going to follow quietly."

"And then..." His eyebrows furrowed as he continued. "He lost it and he broke into his true form. He may have been young back then but his dog demon form was big as a house. He either tore or crushed the others to their deaths. Almost killed Jaken in the process. Then he bounded towards the man holding his mother."

"Funny thing is...She pushed the man out of the way and Sesshomaru ended up crashing into her instead. She stumbled backwards..."

He didn't need to continue. An image of the bloody woman made me shudder. Inuyasha entwined his fingers with mine under the sheets.

"Sesshomaru jumped after her... Transformed back to his regular human form but he was a few seconds too late. His mother collided and..."

I unconsciously clutched onto his hand with a tighter grip.

"Dad came back from his trip that day. He was a few days earlier than expected. Jaken had gone back to his office to alert him. When the two came back, they found Sesshomaru standing in front of his dead mother." His voice seemed to get smaller by the second. "Dad fell into a stage of depression. He lost his wife-his same wife- twice. And Sesshomaru wasn't helping much either. The jerk started closing himself up on everyone. Talking lesser each day and boom. He became the cold jack ass he is today."

"And then...Dad met my mom. She was the mayor's daughter of a small town in the suburbs of Tokyo. He finally recovered from the emotional stress he was going through with her help. They married a couple of years later. Sesshomaru didn't say anything, not even a word of disagreement. He never accepted Mom though. And on the day of their wedding, Dad made a visit to Toutousai. Family friend," he explained when I gave him a quizzical look, "He's a legendary black smith. He's a downright senile nut, but he still makes the best swords of all kinds. Dad gave him two of his teeth. Strange, yes I know, and he asked if Toutousai could make two swords for him."

A sudden image of the two antique swords in the study flashed across my mind.

"You mean those two swords on the study wall?"

"Yeah. The rusty looking one is Tetseiga. The sword of destruction. The other one is Tenseiga. The sword of life. Corny names if you ask me, but Dad says no one could have named them any better so best not say anything about it."

I surpressed a giggle and he leisurely continued.

"Life went on. Dad became high-spirited after his marriage and he finally got out of the depression stage. Sesshomaru was actually the opposite. He would lock himself up more often each day. The only person who ever talked to him at that time was probably that mangy wolf."

"You mean Ayame's boyfriend?" I asked.

"Yeah, the one who can't shut up," he growled, "Anyways...Then Mom got me. I was only two months old when she got murdered. Yes, murdered," he repeated when my eyes grew wide, "From this jack ass who had been stalking her ever since highschool...Takemaru was his name I think... He thought Mom was betraying him for marrying Dad. He was one of those piece of shits who believe demons is pure evil. She was murdered in an isolated alleyway, but Dad found her in time to use Tenseiga to revive her."

"The sword can bring back the dead?"

"Never saw him actually doing it since I was dead inside my mother, but yeah, I guess so. I'm alive and talking, see?"

A small gasp escaped my lips.

"And here we get to the part about Mr. Jack Ass and his dumb attitude problems..." he muttered, "I guess he's a stuck-up cold arrogant bastard because..."

A moment of silence passed as I curiously looked at him as he scowled.

"...Because he's jealous of me." He finally concluded after moments of silence.

"Jealous? Of you?"

"Hey! I do have some positive traits some people admire about me too!"

I broke into a series of giggles as he mumbled a few unnecessary curses and pulled me closer.

"Think about it Kagome... His mother died. Twice. My mother died once and Dad was able to save her along with me. He still didn't forgive him all these years for not making the swords earlier for his mother. And he still believes all humans are vile creatures who killed his mother..."

That left me pondering. I felt mixed emotions as I thought about it. My father passed away when I was young, so I could understand how he would have felt to lose his mother. Maybe it was sympathy I was feeling. Or was it really pity like Inuyasha had said?

But I didn't think Sesshomaru could actually be such a devout mama's boy. ..

The thought made me chuckle quietly again and I rolled out of his arms.

"Where you going?" He lazily asked on the bed as I put on my robe and headed for the bathroom, "It's only ten."

I smiled as I poked my head out of the door.

"I have a date."

"Oh? With whom?" He asked with a wry smile.

"Sango."

And I snapped the door shut.

* * *

>>> 

Sango drove in an uncomfortable silence.

She was confused as hell.

She had seen Rin kissing some man in front of the condo. She couldn't make out his face, but she definitely remembered that his hair had an unusual color of silver.

She had no idea that her friend was seeing someone. She would have been a little upset at Rin for not telling her, but the look on her face told her to stay quiet. She wanted to believe that she had her reasons of not telling her.

Rin was looking out the window, her eyes glued to the passing scenery outside. She knew she was making Sango slightly uncomfortable, but she just needed a moment to calm down.

The moment had come and gone.

"Sango, I'm sorry for everything this morning," she quietly whispered.

"Huh? Oh...Yeah, no it's all right..." Sango muttered back. She drove out of the highway.

"Could you tell me about your friend?" She finally looked at her companion and smiled.

Seeing her smile made Sango feel much better. She accepted her gesture of friendliness and started chattering away.

"Oh well, we've been friends ever since our second year in high school... She was always obsessed in clothes even back in those times," she chuckled, "She left Japan and stayed with her cousin in England for a while for further studies in designing. She came back just a few months ago but she couldn't get contact with me because she was too busy planning for her store."

Rin merely listened as the car finally came to a stop in a parking lot across the hospital.

"She's going to open it next month. She already bought a place near Yajawa Street. It focuses mainly on wedding gowns. She was a little daring if you ask me," Sango continued as they both got out of the car, "First year after her studies and she's opening a store of her own already? And you know how wedding gowns have the most intricate designs on them."

The two women headed the curb of the street. A small crowd was already there, anxiously waiting for the cars to come to a stop like everyone else on a typical busy weekday morning. The massive hospital was just across the street, the windows gleaming under the sunlight and patients were already heading towards the transparent glass doors.

"But I'm sure she'll do all right. She's always devoted to her work...Like she is to her recent boyfriend," Sango chuckled, "You're going to love her, Rin. The first time I met you, I thought you were a lot like her."

"So am I going to get the name of your friend?" Rin gently teased her friend with a small smile. She looked ahead to see if the light had changed, but something else caught her eye. A man was standing not too far away and his face was behind a newspaper which had a clear, bold headline on the front.

**MARRIAGE OF IRONY: HIGURASHI AND KOIZU?**

A large photograph of a man and a woman was on the front page. The man with flowing silver hair had been looking away from the camera; obviously a work of a secretive paparazzi. The woman was certainly appealing with tidy black hair and a face of pure joy at a coffee shop. Another great masterpiece of a paparazzi.

The two names seemed to echo in her mind. Taunting, mocking, and teasing her. Now everywhere she looked seemed to be covered in the agonizing words.

_Higurashi..._

_Koizu..._

_Together they are the perfect couple..._

_I guess all the remarks from the young bachelor about humans were lies after all..._

_Their marriage is to take place in a few days time..._

_The most remarkable union ever..._

_"I love him" was what a jolly Kagome Higurashi answered..._

_"She is the best thing that ever happened to me" was the demon's reply..._

_Higurashi..._

_Koizu..._

"You mean I haven't given it to you? Oh, the light's changed. Rin? Rin!"

She felt her friend shaking her gently and she suddenly found herself staring at pedestrians walking past her and occasionally frowning at her for standing dumbly on the busy street. Her heart was pounding loudly and all she heard were buzzes and incomprehensible meaningless words.

"Rin, you all right? You're zoning out too often," Sango said as she pulled her friend along as she started to cross the street, "You ill?"

"...No...I... I'm fine, Sango." She gave her a placid smile and quickened her pace.

However, she was not fine. She felt horribly weak and was already on the verge of tears just looking at the simple phrase of six words.

But she wasn't the only one.

Ten minutes before Rin Akita had read the headlines, another woman of ebony hair had exited the penthouse to find a carelessly thrown newspaper at the front of the door. One look at the head lines and her eyes were streaming and she hurriedly left to catch a taxi.

Five minutes after that, a woman with flaming red hair stopped drinking her coffee as she saw the headlines in a small store next to the bus stop. She immediately abandoned her coffee and purchased a newspaper and couldn't help to suppress the tears she wanted to release for her dear friend.

Maybe fate was simply playing with them.

Because all three women were headed to the same destination.

* * *

"Rin!" 

Rin had already changed into her uniform when Ayame came bursting into the changing room. She still wasn't dressed in her own uniform and she looked devastated as she raced into the room.

"Good morning, Ayame," she greeted with a weak smile.

"Why didn't you tell me?" Ayame asked in a quivering voice.

"...About what?"

"About this!" She thrust the newspaper in front of her face. "Why didn't you tell me about it, Rin? Why are you...So cooped up these days? Tell me, god dammit!"

Ayame grabbed Rin by both of her upper shoulders and gazed into her friend's slowly altering smiling facade.

"Why?" She whispered. "Why didnt' you tell me?"

"I...I've got to go Ayame."

Rin hastily came out of her grip and headed out the door, but Ayame refused to let the subject go.

"You're not going anywhere unless you tell me why your lover is getting married to another woman whom I am quite acquainted with!" Ayame growled as she followed her.

"Not so loud, Ayame," Rin merely whispered as she walked down the hall giving nods and smiles for the patients who waved merrily at her. Nurses were bustling around and doctors were walking with their eyes on the medical charts and interns were intensely watching patients as they received their check-ups.

"Good morning Rin, Dr. Naraku is looking for you," a cheery nurse with amber hair came to the two woman with a smile, "Oh, and Kyou walked all the way to the bathroom himself this morning! I guess the paralysis is finally wearing off. He just can't wait to see you."

"Thank you, Yumi," Rin said behind her smiling facade, "I'll get back to doctor as soon as I can."

"All right, I'll see you around."

Rin continued to head for the front office and Ayame once again was hot on her heels.

"Rin, you may think this is none of my business, but I'm sorry to say that it is!" Ayame hissed as she grabbed both of Rin's wrists, "I don't want you to go over something like this all over again! Please..." She stopped walking as she pleaded with a soft voice. "Just tell me..."

Rin felt a pang of guilt when she saw that her friend was in a distressed state for her. She looked over her shoulder for a quick glance to see Sango enthusiastically greeting a woman with dark hair at the benches near the front reservation desk.

"I'll tell you Ayame," Rin whispered as she gently pulled her wrists away, "But not now. I promised Sango I'd meet her friend."

"Wait...Sango invited you too?" Ayame blurted out with a surprised look on her face.

"Yes, she did. Do you know her friend too?" Rin asked as she walked towards the two chatting women. She put on a weak smile, wanting to start a friendly relationship with the woman just like Sango had asked her to. However, her smile turned into a small frown when she saw the new woman suddenly break into tears, sobbing softly and making Sango flustered. Rin was not far away from the two when Ayame started to protest.

"No, wait! Rin, I think Sango forgot to tell you her name don't-"

"Oh, Rin!"

Sango had noticed her two friends coming over to her, one with a look of concern and one who looked a little frantic. Rin stopped in front of the two women sitting on the bench. The woman was burying her face into a handkerchief Sango had given her and she was slowly starting to wipe away her tears when she heard them approach. She looked up and gave Rin and Ayame a weak smile.

"Um...This wasn't exactly how I planned on this get-together, but hey at least we're all here!" Sango laughed nervously. "Rin, this is Kagome."

The name rang a bell. Now the face looked all too familiar to her.

Rin could hardly contain her shock.

Kagome extended her hand with the same wobbling smile.

"Kagome. Higurashi Kagome."

* * *

Late update but long chapter. Thank you for all the reviews I love you all...sob... Winter break is coming to an end soon I'm going to be busy as hell but I'll still be around...Somehow. 

People usually pay to watch a movie in a theater... People usually REVIEW in exchange for READING a fic. Double RR please.  
Hope you enjoyed it!


	5. Chapter 5

**Crisscross**

**Chapter Five **

>>>Inutashio>>>

I had to admit that I was a trifle nervous. I knew he would come like I had told him to but still I was a little apprehensive. Besides...He had to come get his car. He wouldn't just abandon it so he wouldn't have to come back again...Or would he?

I paced the living room once more and I kept finding myself remembering the day I visited his condominium.

It was the first time I've been there. It was the same day I received the news that Kagome was the priestess's granddaughter. I had pestered Jaken the previous night and I found him anxiously waiting for me when I drove into the parking lot. He hurried over to me and handed me the spare key of his apartment. He was still worried that Sesshomaru might find out about it, but I finally assured him that he wouldn't and if he did, I would take all the blame.

He lived in a fine flat. Commodious andlavish. I asked Jaken to be in front of the door just in case to greet him early and let him be aware of my presence as I entered the house.

It was simple. A little too tidy. The furniture was nicely arranged throughout the all the six rooms. I explored his kitchen, noticing that there was no sign that he actually had his meals there. I started wandering off to the living room. Armchair, sofa, bookshelf, coffee table...Nothing much. The walls were white, everything was neatly in place... It was very similar to his room when he was young. That was when I noticed the picture.

It was on the fourth bookshelf at my eye level. I hadn't expected to find something like this and curiosity won me over as I started examining the picture inside, the frame in my hand.

It was a woman. Appealing at that. She was in a light sundress under the bright sunshine, laughing heartedly in a park. She looked around her early twenties with healthy skin and the fine mane of raven hair. The photograph was a little crinkled at the edges but seemed to have been pressed smooth.

She reminded me of someone. I got the feeling that I saw her a few times before. Maybe I was just mistaking it because she reminded me of both Izayoi and...

I had no time to ponder more about it because of the frantic squawks from Jaken outside. I quickly placed the frame back onto the shelf as the door was roughly opened.

He must have been just back from his office. He was still in his suit and a briefcase was in hand. His piercing gold eyes glared at me then wandered over to the picture on the shelf. I noticed that I have misplaced it by leaving it on more to the left than its previous place.

I've never seen him so menacing in my life.

I asked him if the woman was someone important. He ignored my question and demanded why I was there.

Then we had a shouting match. Well, shouting match wouldn't quite fit the description because I was the only one who was yelling. He just refused to answer me and his stubborn attitude was driving me off the edge. I ended up ordering him to prepare for the ceremony and stop seeing anyone if he was and rushing out the door in an infuriated state.

I still regret doing that. I had always tried to get him to approve of humans. And the picture told me that he finally did. Yet, there I was, demanding him to stop contacting her and fulfilling the contract for his deceased mother's sake.

I was pacing the living room again when I caught his scent. I heard the door open and close with a soft click. I sank into the armchair nearby that faced the hallway. I knew he was aware of my presence, but he chose to ignore me and headed for the stairs.

"Sesshomaru, I need a word with you."

I could hear him stop on the steps. I sighed inwardly and called him again.

"Would you come to the living room?"

"I can hear you just fine, Father."

I was getting impatient and a little unnerved with the tone of voice he was using.

"You will come in here. Now."

I was still a little doubtful that he'd oblige.

To my slight surprise, he did.

He placidly walked in with the nonchalant gait of his and stood a good distance in front of me. I must say, he did not look his best. I could sense his irritation behind his impassive mask and the corners of his eyes were a very pale hue of red.

"Have you prepared the ring?"

I knew he was not keen on talking about anything related to the marriage but I saw no point of beating around the bush.

"No, Father."

"...And your best man? I thought I told you to find someone a week ago."

"You did, Father."

"And?"

The silence told me that he had neglected his task. I let out a sigh before I gave him a sharp glare.

"Son, you need a best man for the wedding. And the ring is essential for this ceremony."

"I do not find a best man compulsory, Father."

"But I do," I clearly stated, "And you need to find someone before the end of this week."

He said nothing and I felt the anger I have suppressed this past week ready to burst out of me.

"Sesshomaru, you need to participate in the preparations," I firmly continued, "This is your wedding."

"I certainly haven't noticed, Father."

"Sesshomaru, this is for your mother," I spoke through clenched teeth, "Arranged marriages were not common back in my days. Be thankful you are getting wed to a suitable woman you are acquainted with."

"Suitable, Father?" His voice was challenging. "How do you define suitable in your words?"

"...Sesshomaru, we are getting off the subject."

"Have you read the papers, Father? Did you see all the mendacities of the rubbish so called articles?"

"I tried-"

"That's what you said when Mother passed away, Father."

His words seemed to pierce through my ears.

"Have you ever wondered how Mother caught the illness? Perhaps the miko had deliberately weakened her respiratory system during-"

"You have no right to impugn her honor for you did not even know her!" I shouted as I got onto my feet. "She was the best miko alive at that time who actually succeeded in bringing her back to life!"

"She was a human, Father," he coldly stated. "It is not common for one to expect duplicity from them."

"How do you find the nerve to criticize humans when the one you love is also-"

I stopped abruptly when I caught Izayoi's scent near. I didn't want her to know anything unnecessary before I had everything all cleared out. I took in a quick breath and lowered my voice. I noticed his face was still immobile but a menacing glint had sparked to life in his slowly crimsoning eyes.

"You will do as I say, Sesshomaru... This discussion is over."

He swiftly turned his back on me and immediately left the house, closing the front door behind him with a loud slam.

I sighed as I sank back into my chair again asIzayoientered the living room.

"Inutashio? Dear, what's wrong?"

She laid a cool hand on my forehead as she looked at me in concern. I merely smiled.

"I'm fine. We were just discussing which ring we should get and I guess it got overheated."

I could tell she knew I was lying, but she said nothing.

I figured that all that was left for me to do was to pray to the heaven's above for the fateful day to end with a wedded couple and not a tear shed.

I was wishing for the impossible.

* * *

>>>>>> 

He felt like slamming his car door shut with all the strength he could muster, but he knew it would only leave him to call his insurance company. He stared empty mindedly through the windshield, trying to cool his mind.

It didn't help.

He took out his cell and punched a few numbers, waiting for the dial tone to end. He heard someone pick up.

"Sesshomaru Koizu, you have a lot of explaining to do."

It was not exactly an answer he was expecting, but he knew he would never get a proper greeting from Kouga whenever he called.

"I believe you've read the papers."

"Who's this Higurashi girl?" He immediately demanded.

"I need a best man."

"...Who's this Higurashi girl?"

"Kouga..."

"You really think I'll be your best man when you're getting married off to this woman I never even heard of?"

"Is the name not familiar to you?"

"No."

"Higurashi is the only miko family left in Japan."

"That still doesn't explain why I wasn't aware of her"

"Kouga..."

He waited.

"...Fine."

Then he heard nothing but the dial tone.

Task one done.

He turned off his phone.

Now for task two.

He slowly drove out of the parking lot.

* * *

"So, Tawamura-san, how do you feel about your new novel?" 

Shitty.

That was the first word that popped in his mind but he merely smiled.

"Great."

The lights were far too bright. He couldn't help but to squint.

"Your works are widely loved! Only introduced to us for two months and already they're being translated into three different languages!"

He noticed that the woman, who was supposedly interviewing him, had too much makeup on the left side of her face.

"Yeah, I was surprised myself."

When was this interview going to end? He was going to kill Miroku for this.

"All your plots are complex and neatly planned out, many of your readers are calling you a genius!"

Who was this Higurashi woman? Why hadn't he been informed of her?

"Well, that's certainly different from what my college professor called me after reading my works."

He thought of Ayame. She always acted as she was strong, but he knew she was actually very sentimental... Plus, she was always overprotective of Rin.

Man, was she going to have a fit.

"Oh, really? What did he call you?"

He thought Sesshomaru would have told him something personal like this.

He was his best friend. He was the only person who was able to talk to him during his moody childhood. He was surely a special presence to him...Right?

"A sick minded asshole with a sadistic twist in writing."

The small group of audience snickered behind the set and he half-heartedly chuckled along as the interviewer filled the whole room with her shrill laughs.

"My, that certainly is different!"

This woman was very irritating.

"Yes..."

He wanted to get out of the cramped place. Away from the people, away from the bright lights, away from the cameras.

"Have you thought what your next novel will be about?"

'Why the hell do you want to know, woman?' he thought.

"No, but I just hope whatever it is going to be about, it's going to reach my goal of a million copies."

He wanted to leave.

"Oh, why don't you write an autobiography?"

He froze. The smile was now plastered on his face. The woman had a coy smile.

"...I would love to..." He practically spat the words out through gritted teeth. "But no one will purchase it will they?"

The crowd broke into faint chuckles and snickers, but the woman laughed hysterically again.

"My, Tawamura-san! Your childhood wasn't **surely** that abhorrent, was it?"

He saw a mocking glint in her eyes. He unconsciously gripped his hands tighter.

He needed a drink.

"Maybe..."

Now.

He abruptly stood up, startling the woman.

"Excuse me, but I need to use the lavatory."

"Oh, but Tawamura-san, this is a live show."

"...Whoops, I didn't know that."

A lie. How could have he not known when all Miroku told him about the interview was that it was a live show over the last two days?

"Well, we'll just have to get back to Tawamura-san after the commercials."

The woman expertly covered his mistake by smiling towards the camera and the red light on the device switched off.

"I'm sorry, I'll be right back. Please excuse my small bladder."

The crowd laughed again.

Again, another lie.

He hurried out of the room and into the pristine white hallway and headed for the door behind the green exit sign.

He needed a drink, so he was going to get one at his favorite bar.

* * *

Miroku Takami felt like the world was spinning as he opened his eyes. Maybe it was the beer the previous night? 

He stared at the ceiling, vaguely acknowledging that he was on his coach in his messy living room and not in his comfortable bed. He tried remembering what he did yesterday. First he was editing Kouga's first few chapters...Then the doorbell rang...Then he saw her in front of his door...

He gave up, knowing that if he continued, he'd end up brooding again.

A knock on his front door of his flat made him groan. Maybe if he pretended he wasn't at home, whoever outside would go away?

Another fast rap told him that the unwelcome guest was not planning on leaving soon.

"Fine, I'm coming..." He mumbled.

He trudged to the door, stepping on the strewn newspapers, and finally got to his destination.

Maybe that was his father?

The thought made him immediately straighten up and tidy his disheveled hair with his hands. He opened the door.

"Hey, I need a drink."

No one could expect a proper greeting from Kouga.

"The bar does not open until seven minutes past two, Mr. Tawamura," Miroku joked with a small smile, "Why are you not at your interview?"

"'Cause the woman was getting on my nerves and it is seventeen minutes past three, which gives me a perfect reason for getting my drink."

Miroku gave a small sigh and stood aside as Kouga strode into his rumpled flat.

"You know, my place isn't a bar," Miroku said as he followed Kouga into his kitchen.

"Yeah, I know. You have to pay at bars. Besides," his friend said as he gave him a wolfish smile, getting a seat near the dining table, "No bar can beat your grandfather's sake."

"I think I may be spoiling you," Miroku said as he headed for his refrigerator, "Free bottles of alcohol every week? I should start getting paid for this."

"Oh wow, and what may this be?"

Miroku straightened up behind the refrigerator door holding a carton of juice to find Kouga looking at him wryly holding up a bra.

"That's not mine."

Kouga's eyebrows shot upward. "Never said anything. Whoa, C cup! I thought Sango wore B?"

"How do you know what she wears?"

"You told me, remember?" He grinned.

Miroku sighed. "Is there any way I can keep you quiet?"

"Put down that Mr.Shimura's Best Orange Juice and get me sake."

He grudgingly obliged to his order and brought two bottles of sake to the table. Kouga instantly grabbed one and finished almost half the bottle in the first swig.

"Just to tell you, I didn't do anything with her."

"Who? The C cup lady?" Kouga smirked as he lowered his bottle.

"It was Sachiko."

"I thought you two were over."

"She was drunk yesterday and started stripping in front of me."

"And you didn't do anything? I'm proud of you, monk."

"I decided to be devoted to Sango and please don't call me a monk."

"Hey, in Kouga's world, if your ancestors were all a monk, you're a monk."

Kouga took another swig from his bottle and slammed it down onto the table. Droplets of alcohol were sprayed onto the wooden surface but Kouga didn't make any move to clean them. It was then Miroku realized that Kouga was troubled.

He silently waited for him to spill everything out like he always did when he was drunk only to receive an unexpected question.

"Did you read the papers?"

Miroku lowered his bottle and looked at him. "You mean about Sesshomaru."

"So did you?"

"Yes...But I don't think this drink we are having is for congratulating his marriage."

Kouga was about to yell that obviously it wasn't, but he soon remembered that Miroku was unaware of Rin. He merely took another drink out of his nearly empty bottle.

"Sesshomaru's one lucky dog," Miroku chuckled, "Kagome is a nice girl."

Kouga almost spat out his booze, but managed not to at the last second. So was he the only one after all who did not know her?

"...You know this Higurashi woman?"

"Yes, she's a friend of mine."

So he wasn't the only one who was left out.

"What do you know about her?"

"She's got a charming backside...And she's the granddaughter of a great priestess," he hastily added when he received a glare, "She's a fine friend. I heard that she went to England to carry her designing studies further and came back a few weeks ago."

Kouga said nothing.

"You've got to meet her. She's-"

A loud slam on the wooden table cut off Miroku and it startled him to see Kouga glaring at him and sake sloshed all over the table.

"You know Sesshomaru's important to me, right?" He snarled.

Miroku blinked.

"I thought you were straight when I saw you with Ayame."

"Monk, I'm not in the mood for jokes."

"Yes, I know he's important to you," Miroku said with a small scowl. "He was your friend since your early childhood wasn't he?"

"...You know the incident with the bastard during my freshman year, don't you?"

"Who?"

"My...Father." He managed to growl out the last word with a menacing glint in his eyes.

"...Yes, I do."

"Sesshomaru's the one who saved me from him."

Miroku looked up from the table.

"I thought you said the police-"

"I lied," he shortly interrupted. "He was drunk that night and snuck into my room to finish me off. I barely managed to keep myself alive before Sesshomaru practically broke his limbs."

"And you're telling me this because?"

"Because I'm trying to prove that I'm not some obsessed homosexual for disagreeing with this marriage."

Kouga couldn't take it anymore. He was never good at keeping secrets. He needed someone to talk to. Ayame was good company, but she had a totally different point of view from him. They even had arguments of whether they should tell anyone about them or not. It was quite pointless really, because Ayame would usually be victorious. In other words, they always came to a conclusion of not telling anybody for the time being.

But those heated discussions took place back in the tranquil times of reality.

Now, it was different.

Kouga let out a low sigh, praying to the gods above him for Ayame not to decapitate him for his decision, and narrowed his eyes.

"I'm going to tell you something Miroku Takami...And I want you to tell me what we should do for our dear old friend Fluffy."

* * *

Sesshomaru felt numb as he drove. He didn't have a destination. He did just a minute ago, but he had deliberately missed the highway exit and that left him no choice but to speed through the rest of the highway. 

He supposed that he should get to work.

He absent-mindedly drove, letting his hands rest on the steering wheel. Maybe he should get some rest. He'll just find something to do wherever he ended up. He was not in the mood for sitting in front of his desk.

For a few minutes he drove pointlessly from place to place until he finally couldn't take it anymore.

The speedometer was suddenly boosted up.

He could hear the yells of the people he raced past.

The screeches of the wheels as he skidded to a stop before taking off again.

The rapid heartbeats as a beast raged inside of him.

He took a sharp turn. Left, right, forward, left, right. A familiar edifice came into view.

He abruptly screeched his car to a stop only to see that he had arrived at the Takashimaya mall.

It was certainly not the best place he could go for now, but he had a dreadful trinket to buy.

He carelessly parked his car from across the building and stepped out.

The skyscraper was gleaming proudly under the sunlight.

He needed to think of when he took the wrong step.

He needed to think back.

Starting from the day from their first encounter: April 25th, 2003.

* * *

Miroku didn't interrupt, not even once as Kouga spilled everything out to him. He listened to the death of Sesshomaru's mother and how it was connected to everything that was taking place now. He sipped his drink while listening about this woman named Rin. He pondered how everything became such a mess. 

"-And then he says he needs a best man...The nerve of him!" Kouga ranted on as he sloshed more of his drink on the table, his face red from alcohol and anger, "He didn't even mention one word of this to me and the first thing he says is 'Kouga I need a best man.' Ha! Best man my ass!"

Miroku wearily watched Kouga start on his third bottle of sake. Ayame was going to decapitate him for letting him drink that much.

He quietly watched Kouga take another gulp from his bottle and slump over the table. He pursed his lips.

"Kouga...I don't see what's the fuss."

He received a glare from the pink-eyed wolf demon.

"Think about it Kouga," Miroku hastily continued, "He doesn't technically need to be faithful to Kagome doesn't he? Although, then I would be depreciating my childhood friend's honor, but-"

Kouga held up a hand, indicating Miroku to stop. He held up his index finger.

"Two words, monk. The Press."

"...What about the press?"

Kouga leaned back onto his chair, letting his hair loose from his ponytail and fall behind him in a black waterfall. He looked at the ceiling.

Miroku sighed, knowing that Kouga's babbling habit was kicking in now that he was drunk. He too leaned back.

"Let's put it this way...Sesshomaru holds the spotlight in the business field. Being the one to ever start a successful business alone at an early age of nineteen and such, Sesshomaru Koizu is a prominent man. Unfortunately, our dear friend Mr. Koizu is tactless and he has never failed to mention how he detested humans to their very bones and they could all become extinct like the ancient reptiles for all he'd care in every single interview he was in. However, he is getting married to a human, a miko in fact, someone who purifies, in other words, extinguishes demons, and that is an action that definitely contradicts his own words. The press is ecstatic that he is getting married because now they have something else to talk about rather than the recent new discovery of the queer species of chicken. However, the media, like everyone else in this cruel, cold world, likes misery than joy when it comes to other people other than themselves. So in other words-"

"-If Sesshomaru gets caught in the process of unethical doings, the press would be hot on his heels. Yes, I get it, so stop rambling."

"And another reason..."

He waited. Kouga tried to take a sip out of his bottle, only to find out that it was empty for the third time, and reached for Miroku's drink instead.

"Ever heard something called a conscience before?"

Miroku slowly nodded, indicating that he understood what he was trying to say, but Kouga leisurely continued with slurred words. "This contract is as same as his mother's life, Miroku... He wouldn't taint it...Too bad he ain't going to huh?"

Kouga looked at his friend across the table with bloodshot eyes then suddenly slammed his forehead onto it. Miroku sighed.

"Well..." He hesitated before speaking again. "Couldn't Sesshomaru start a new life with Kagome? Like I said, she's really nice company."

He received another glare from his friend as he snarled in reply.

"**Rin** was the best thing that ever happened to him, monk," he growled. "Not this... **Kagome** woman."

"Gee, someone's very pissed off about this."

"He's more than a brother to me, Miroku," Kouga mumbled, "I want him to be happy."

"...That would have sounded very sweet if your eyelids weren't drooping and empty bottles of sake hiding your head from view."

Miroku's words were slurred as Kouga's eyelids drooped more. Everything was becoming blurred. Miroku called his name from a far distance away. He gave a guttural "urgh" as an answer.

He thought of Ayame. Was she also secretly engaged to another man, but she just didn't know about it? Would her fiancé suddenly barge into his home and take her away from him?

Oh wait...

Wasn't he supposed to be at his interview?

He was so sure that the interviewer's mass of curly hair perched on the top of her head was a wig. Why else would she had so nervously touched her hair during the whole show?

He should have pulled it off of her head and threw it to the crowd as a souvenir.

A smirk played on his lips. That would have been funny.

...Was Miroku's head been inflated to twice its original size or was it just him?

Maybe it was just him...Maybe...

His grip on the sake bottle slowly loosened as he drifted off into a peaceful sleep.

* * *

"Higurashi. Kagome Higurashi." 

Ayame froze behind Rin, waiting with baited breath. She could see Kagome's weak smile faltering already when Rin did not immediately accommodate her gesture of acquaintance.

Ayame didn't know whether to sigh with relief or not when Rin took her hand a few moments later.

"Pleasure to meet you," she heard her say in her merry voice, "Rin Akita."

Kagome's wobbling smile became a bit more stable as she gazed up to the woman. She was a petit woman in size she noticed, who had quite a pleasant appearance. She seemed to be the gregarious type, the kind of person who would welcome anybody with open arms. Kagome decided that she liked her.

"Hey, Ayame?" Kagome finally managed to notice her nervous looking friend. "It's been such a long time, give me a hug."

She came over with an equally unstable smile and obliged to her request.

"Were you a good girl in England?" She asked with a chuckle as she pulled back. She sat to Kagome's left.

"Yes...My cousin was quite welcoming," Kagome answered as she fiddled with Sango's handkerchief.

"So... Mind if I ask why you've been crying ever since you saw my face?"

She suddenly stiffened. A new river of tears was beginning to form.

"Um...I'm..."

She stammered, trying to decide whether to tell them or not. She glanced up at them with nervous eyes and let out a small sigh.

"I'm getting married."

She almost blanched after choking out the dreaded words, bringing a new series of tears to run down her cheeks. Ayame glanced nervously at Sango.

"But something's telling me that these are not exactly tears of joy, Kagome," Sango whispered as she stroked her friend's arm, "What's wrong?"

Kagome merely hung her head, clutching the damp handkerchief in her hand. She only looked up only when a hand offered another clean one. She saw Rin offering hers with a small smile. She gratefully took it and pressed her watering eyes.

"The groom...He's..."

She took in a rattling breath.

"I...Don't know him...That well...I..."

"Kagome, calm down," Sango said, "What do you mean you don't know him?"

She shot a desperate look at Ayame.

"Who is it, Kagome?" It came out in a small whisper from Ayame's lips. She prayed to all the gods she knew above to not say the name she was expecting.

"...Sesshomaru...Koizu."

Ayame's pair of green eyes darted towards Rin. She could see no difference in her face.

"I...I don't know what to do, Sango," Kagome muttered, "I don't know anything about him and I'm getting married to him. It's just not right I-"

"Wait, Kagome," Sango grabbed Kagome's hands in efforts to stop them from shaking, "What about Inuyasha?"

Rin's eyes darted towards Sango.

"He's Inuyasha's brother, Sango," Kagome whispered, her bottom lip trembling slightly, "Sesshomaru's Inuyasha's brother."

Sango gasped, still trying to hide her confusion while Ayame tried her best to catch Rin's gaze. She looked impassive other than the concerned look on her perfect facade.

"I don't know what to do anymore...I don't know anything about him, Sango, it's all because of this pointless contract, I... I..."

She started trembling uncontrollably once more as she gripped the edge of the bench. Sango nor Ayame didn't know what to say.

"He likes spearmint."

All three women on the bench looked up at Rin. She was smiling softly.

"His favorite beverage is black coffee, but please don't let him get anywhere near that, it's nothing but caffeine," she continued, "He's not a smoker, but he tends to be one sometimes when he's stressed, so keep him away from those dreadful sticks will you?"

"...How do you know Sesshomaru?" Kagome asked with quizzical eyes.

She smiled.

"You could say he's an old friend of mine."

Ayame said nothing as she clutched onto her skirt, trying to keep her shaking hands from twitching. She lowered her head to try to hide her watering eyes as she heard someone approaching with a jog. She recognized the scent as Kohaku.

"Good morning, ladies. Rin, Dr.Naraku is driving me nuts, you have to go see him," he said with a playful smile. It faltered when he saw Kagome's red eyes. "Um...Is this exactly not the time to interrupt?"

"No, it's fine," Kagome quickly said as she plastered on a smile, "Sango, is this your brother?"

"Oh, yeah. He's an intern here. Kohaku, this is Kagome," Sango said as they exchanged handshakes, "She's my friend who just came back from England."

"Nice to meet you, but I've got to get going soon. Hakudoshi will be after my blood when he finds out I've been chatting with women while he was with Doctor," he chuckled, "Oh and Rin, Yumi also said Kyou and your father is calling for you like crazy."

"Thank you, Kohaku. I better get on my way," Rin said as she straightened up, "It was a pleasure meeting you."

"Oh, wait!" Kagome held up the handkerchief.

"No, you can keep it," she replied, "You seem to need it more than I do."

She flashed another smile for the last time and left without another word.

"Ayame," Sango called, never taking off her eyes from Rin's retreating form, "I have a feeling I'm missing something here..."

Ayame raised her head with a small sniff. Her eyes were dry but slightly red.

"Um...I'll leave you ladies alone," Kohaku hastily said and he hurried over to the elevator.

Silence took place over the three women and for a while, none of them heard anything other than the bustling of the employees and patients and the vague feminine voice that was reporting a lost child through the speakers.

"Ayame," Sango repeated with a firmer voice, "You know something, don't you?"

She said nothing as her two friends looked at her.

"When was Sesshomaru an old friend of Rin? I didn't even know they were even acquainted with one another."

She sighed inwardly, knowing that she had bound to mention the whole thing to someone someday.

'I'm sorry, Rin.'

She looked at the two women with a pair of exhausted green eyes.

"I'm going to tell you guys something Rin made me swear not to tell anyone. She had her reasons why she hid this from everyone for over two years, so don't badger her about it."

'I'm so sorry.'

The huge digital clock on the west wall announced 11:10.

* * *

Next chapter will be mostly flashback on how Sesshomaru and Rin met(Along with Kouga and Ayame and a little bit of Miroku and Sango. ...I think I have this weird obsessions with nurses.) 

R&R please...


	6. Chapter 6

_"I'm going to tell you a little story, Sesshomaru Koizu. I'm going to tell you how a small purple marble has put our necks in danger."_

Maybe he shouldn't have gotten the phone. It was never a good sign when it rung at three in the morning.

**Crisscross  
  
Chapter Six **

The red numbers of the elegant digital clock on the wall changed its numbers to announce the current time. He was having some difficulty falling asleep that night. Not that he ever did get a good night's sleep.

He stood in the balcony, looking down at the quiet Tokyo view in front of him, ignoring the cold wind passing by. He felt uneasy and a bit frustrated for no reason. Maybe this was why Kouga always smoked.

That was when his cell phone started vibrating on the coffee table. He couldn't recognize the number. It could've been anyone. His father trying to get contact with him for the twelfth time of the day, his blasted female workers asking if he wanted company, or that obnoxious client who's been bothering him for the last few days. He didn't feel like getting it. He grabbed the bottle of gin he had been working on and took a small sip.

The vibration didn't stop.

Slowly the numbers of the clock began to switch and the humming sound abruptly came to a stop. He gave his still phone another glance before turning his gaze back to the dark scenery.

And again the small communication device buzzed to life.

It was picked up with a smooth motion of a clawed hand.

He paused, looking at the alien number, and slowly pressed the call button.

The sound of water splattering onto a hard surface reached his ears. He could barely hear the heavy breathing over the splashing of water.

"Geez, I thought you were never going to get it."

He recognized the voice. Why was he acquainted with the most bothersome people?

"Kouga, do you know the time?" He walked over to his bed.

"If I'm reading my watch correctly...It's three in the morning."

"Come by my office twelve hours later." He placed his liquor onto the bedside table.

"I'm at Osaka."

He paused. He silently listened to the splashing droplets of water on the other line as he wordlessly looked out the window to see the clear night sky.

Something was up.

"What is it, Kouga?"

"I'm going to tell you a little story, Sesshomaru Koizu. I'm going to tell you how a small purple marble has put our necks in danger."

* * *

The soft chime of the bell on the door woke up the dozing employee in the small jewelry shop. He hastily wiped the wet ends of his mouth and plastered on a smile as he straightened his golden name tag on his uniform. 

"Welcome, sir. Hojo Takenaru at your service!" He cheerfully greeted.

'He's going to be a tough one,' Hojo thought as he recognized who his first customer of the day was. The silver hair, the markings on his face, the clean attire and the impassive mask. He didn't need a sign to broadcast that he was the number one conglomerate of Japan.

"Congratulations on your wedding Koizu-sama," he smiled, "I knew your bride in high school, had a little crush on her too, but don't worry I won't steal her away!"

He gave out a hearty laugh before his smile became crooked and changed into a thin line of nervousness when he received a cold glare from the man in front of the counter.

"So, uh... Here for the ring for the lovely bride?" He asked as his hand fumbled on the keys for the counter.

Sesshomaru said nothing but eyed the gleaming trinkets through the glass. He detested every single one of them. The glittering diamond, the pale sapphire, the elegant jade, the whole lot. He turned his gaze back to the sweating young man holding a crimson cushion where a few rings were laid.

"Um, well, uh," he stammered as he pointed at the first ring. "This is the finest one we have. It's diamond with pure gold embellished on the metal and..."

He stopped with a mumble when a single credit card was slid onto the counter.

"But, er, don't you want to know the price first?"

A menacing glare was all Hojo needed to know that he had better get moving if he didn't want his fingers to be amputated. He almost tripped over his feet as he stumbled to the cashier.

_"The Shikon no Tama is a legendary object from the heavens...So says the thick history book I smuggled out of the library. And here's the interesting part. It can revive the dead."_

"Here's your ring, Koizu-sama," Hojo tentatively said as he placed the container and card onto the counter. "Um...I hope you have...A very nice day."

He grabbed his belongings without another word and swiftly left the jewelry shop with another chime of the bell, not missing Hojo's mutters of cranky customers.

_"Not only that, it can open the gates of Hell, purify demon blood, offer eternal life, and all this other shit that I'm not going to read off the thick chapter of this unpleasantly smelling book."_

_"The Shikon no Tama was a legendary jewel, Kouga. A myth. It was an unexplainable phenomenon when the jewel came into existence and there's no actual evidence that proves its powers."_

_"That's what I thought, but apparently it's the most dangerous piece of shit ever to be created in this world according to this miko..." _

Mellow music was heard through the chatters of the crowd. Customers were busy traveling from store to store, engaged with trivial conversations, laughing as they weaved their way in and out the crowd, soaking in the warmth of the light that poured into the building through the glass dome ceiling. Not many noticed that there was someone standing in front of the railing, silently staring at the ceiling above him.

_"Kouga, I thought I told you not to engage yourself in-"_

_"I didn't. Sesshomaru, we got ourselves in deep shit the moment we saw that glistening purple light." _

He could just imagine the peace dove monument. Yes... It was a massive beautiful glass ornament that glimmered under the sunlight as it hung from the dome ceiling.

The blasted piece of art.

_"This nutter called me up and offered to take in the Shikon no Tama. He has a museum in the Takashimaya mall just a few streets from here and his name was uh... Toto...?"_

_"And what about the miko?"_

_"The miko apparently helps Mr. Nutter at the museum. She says she knows about the Shikon no Tama and hell, all the things she told me about this damn marble were bad...Real bad..." _

He surveyed the interior of the mall. Whoever planned it out was quite a creative architect. The shopping complex was divided into three main buildings, two of them as high as twenty two floors. The main building only consisted of seven floors, each of them a few good meters above or below the other. The floors above the third was made in a circular shape with golden railings prevented people from falling through the huge space in the center where one could view the third floor of quaint cafes that were located as a haven for those who needed a place to rest their legs. The seventh floor was also where anyone could view the magnificent glass dove so close, that the delicate trace of each feather, the thin frangible fern that was held in its beak, and the twinkling pair of clear eyes could be observed.

The blasted piece of art.

_"This bastard called me up a few minutes after Toto did. We got into a nice little conversation and then everything turned ugly when he started bribing me. I told him to fuck off and the next moment he's threatening me."_

_"Did you trace the call?"_

_"Oh yeah, did I ever trace it. Sesshomaru, the call was from Hokkaido." _

He could still hear the panicked screams of passersby, the hissing of the lynx demons, and the concerned voice that echoed through his ears.

_He had opened the door to find his dripping wet friend offering him a wry smile before trudging into his home. He was holding a thick book in his hand and a large scroll in the other. After dropping everything in his hands on the kitchen table, he quickly unrolled the damp scroll he had brought along to reveal a blueprint of a few buildings. Hastily fishing out a thick marker in his pocket, he pulled off the cover and circled the bottom part of the right building. Sesshomaru merely watched him from behind._

_"All right, our destination is right here," Kouga briskly said as he vigorously scribbled on the map. "But Toto's museum is actually here." His hand moved upwards of the yellowish scroll. He scribbled on the third floor of the center building. "But..." His damp hand swerved downwards to point at the first shape he made. "Toto's going to be waiting for us here."_

_"Ginta suspects the bastard doesn't live in Hokkaido. Apparently he called by a public phone in the suburbs to throw us off track," Kouga growled as he scratched his head. "Osaka, Kyoto, Hiroshima, Yokohama, Nagasaki, and last but not least, Tokyo. He's in one of these cities, but our best guess is the big apple of Japan."_

_"'A certain delicate bird can slip and plummet right over your head approximately next Friday'", Kouga scoffed. "You call that a threat? He's talking about the peace dove monument."_

_He slipped a hand into his pocket to fish out a wrinkled cut out newspaper article. He handed it over._

_"You didn't go to that peace movement auction, didn't you?"_

_"Business does not have direct connections with such organization," Sesshomaru coolly answered as he accepted the article. He didn't need to read it to be informed that the grand monument worth almost thirty thousand dollars was bought by a "generous" Japanese conglomerate in the World Auction as a donation to the impoverished people. He obviously did it for the sake of his name as a kind philanthropist._

_Kouga smirked at his answer._

_"Thought so. Cold hearted Fluffy wouldn't do such a thing."_

_He ignored the small scoff from the demon as he started tugging onto the silver chain that was hanging from his neck. A purple glint caught his eye as the Shikon no Tama was pulled out from the neck of Kouga's shirt. He held the chain up to reveal a barely visible crack at the bottom of the smooth surface of the rock.  
He then reached into his pocket to retrieve a single purple shard, placing it between his thumb and index and bringing it up to their eye level._

_"The only shard," he said as he placed it onto Sesshomaru's open hand. A pair of golden eyes studied the harmless piece before turning its gaze back to the intense wolf demon before him._

_"The Shikon no Tama is almost no use if it is not in one whole piece," Kouga explained. "This single shard can make a big difference and that's why I'm giving it to you."_

_"We pretend like we're innocent people just trying to do a good deed by dedicating the most valuable artifact in some nutter's public museum and we trigger off his bird booby trap of his."_

_An eyebrow shifted upwards._

_"We?"_

_"Yes, we," Kouga_ _repeated, refusing to give in, "Kaede suspects the bastard has this weird green stone things that detects the energy radiating off the Shikon no Tama. Since I have the jewel, they'll focus on me, giving you a chance to take the long route around to trigger off the dove. However, Ginta and Hakkaku will be positioned up on the top floor and they'll ambush anyone near the cables. I suspect there will be someone actually on the dove, most likely a demon of the reptile sort. When he isn't suspecting anything, my two loyal men will pop out of nowhere and...Voila!"_

_Sesshomaru looked at the ecstatic wolf demon, whose arms were spread wide in the air and quite a large grin on his face, and felt another migraine coming up._

_"Kouga, not only is your plan too risky," he started with a slow voice, "But I see it unnecessary. You can easily ask the curator to-"_

_"He knows about my father, Sesshomaru." Kouga interrupted with a quite voice. The smile was already replaced by a hooded glare. "I'm going to find out how he knew and then rip his obnoxious mouth into two. Now... Are you with me?"_

_He looked at the single shard on his palm that was still giving off a light purple glow. It was hard to imagine that this thin piece of rock could cause any harm._

_His fingers slowly closed themselves over the glowing shard._

_Kouga gave him a wry smile._

_"You were always a good friend." _

He remembered hearing the audible click of the gun, even through the growling and screeching of demons. Why he had acted like he did the next second, even he had no idea.

_It appeared that Kouga had underestimated his enemy._

_He cursed as he swerved sharply to the left, causing the lynx demon to crash into the wall. The others bounded over his unconscious body and streaked after him._

_There was way too many. Kouga had expected three or five lackeys to ambush each of them, not a whole herd of demons. He could hear the scrambling movements of the lizard demons traveling across the ceiling and slammed the door open to reveal a staircase. Skidding slightly as he rushed onto the stairs, he slashed out his venomous whip at the stampede behind him. An ox demon howled as blood poured from his eyes, but the rest crackled louder as they gained on him._

_Jumping in great leaps, he reached the final staircase and sprinted out the exit. He whammed the door shut behind him and took off, cursing when he heard the door being smashed down. A shop window shattered with an ear-piercing sound, a leapord demon leaping out through the brutally man-made hole with a hiss, but was soon rammed into the concrete wall as he whipped by. A few more leaps and he was out of the deserted hallway in no time, but soon realized that he had nowhere else to go on the circular floor. He had known that Kouga's plan of sprinting across the third floor to trigger off the dove wasn't going to work from the start, which was why he lured the demons up to the fifth floor, but now that he was facing a dead end and wasn't able to catch the scent of Ginta or Hakkaku, he vaguely wished that it had._

_A snarl told him that his unwanted guests have arrived and once again he was engaged into a bloody fight._

_If it weren't for the demons bombarding him, maybe he could have noticed the two figures on the glass monument._

_A small girl dressed in white with a pair of empty eyes was holding a mirror in her hands. The hunched chameleon demon next to her was mumbling as he peered into the green shards on his palm. They were a dull empty colorasthey gaveoff a very weak glow._

_"Master," the demon croaked. "The shards do not seem to respond."_

_The child nodded and slowly turned her stiff wrists to the right. Smoky tendrils swirled on the surface of the mirror, revealing a dark room through the fading fog._

_"The cables has been loosened, Master," he continued. "The mutt does not seem to carry anything."_

_"Well...It would be a waste to disintegrate such a beautiful piece of work."A smooth, cool voice flowed out of the mirror. "Kill him."_

_He was snapping the arm of a screaming lizard when he heard the click. The sound was as if the safety switch had been undone right next to his ears. It was then he noticed the hunched form on the monument, the small metal weapon in his hands aimed right at him._

_It wasn't exactly fear that erupted inside him. It was rage. The same emotion that surged in his blood when he had seen his mother being pushed ever closer to the end of the precipice. The golden color of his eyes turned into a deep red as he let out a low snarl. He grabbed the unconscious lizard demon by the scruff and flung him over the railing._

_But why he chose that moment to look down, he was still not sure._

_He saw her, the woman, standing in the middle of the exposed floor below, oblivious of what was happening four floors above her. He saw her looking at the mall map, lightly trailing her finger over the picture and something inside of him snapped._

_The reptile demon didn't even have time to react. The limp body collided with his much smaller form, making him slide backwards on the slippery glass. The sudden addition of weight made the monument swing slowly as it hung from its loose cables, causing the demon to stumble towards the narrow tail feathers. He barely managed to hang on before he noticed his weight was causing the monument sink towards its tail. He could hear the creaking of the hooks and the loud snapping noises of the cables he himself had loosened and frantically tried to climb back on until he noticed the lizard's body sliding towards him._

_"Shit."_

_The last feeble cable snapped. _

Sesshomaru looked down the railing, now fully noticing the outstanding height between the third floor and his present location.

_He didn't remember climbing onto the railing nor jumping off of it as he heard the loud snap, but he soon found himself plummeting towards the bottom at an amazing speed. He didn't recall hearing the screams of the people below nor the challenging howls from his foes above him, but he did remember seeing her looking up. He did remember that she had a shocked look on her face when he threw himself over her the moment he landed. And oh, did he ever recall the unbelievable surge of pain on his shoulder when the glass statue crashed with a strenuous sound behind him. _

Then he saw black. He was in a dark abyss, his soul floating around helplessly. He saw nothing, felt nothing, heard nothing.

_"Somebody call the ambulance, please! No, he is NOT dead!"_

_"Oh shit, Ginta... Kouga's going to kill us."_

_"Damn it, come on Hakkaku!"_

_"Holy lord! Look at his arm!" _

And then he saw a light. And then he felt cool water drops against his cheek. And then he heard her voice.

_"Please, don't die..."_

Maybe if he had against her wishes, he wouldn't have hurt her so much like he did right now.

Maybe if he hadn't opened his eyes to see her sleeping face in that hospital, she wouldn't be crying for him right now.

Maybe...

* * *

"Oh shit, oh shit, oh shit." 

He could hear himself cursing loudly even as he took sharp turns around parked vehicles, desperately trying to shake off the intimidating buzzing sounds behind him. Of course, he did expect a few cronies to bother him from getting to his destination, but he didn't expect a whole swarm of overly large wasps with venomous stingers to be chasing after him.

"Go and make yourself some honey you damn..."

He flung his body to the left and rolled over, just in time to avoid the sudden attack of a swift stinger. Again letting out a string of invectives, he took off, reminding himself that his final station was just a bit further away.

He couldn't help but to feel relieved when he whipped around the corner to see the colorful advertising wall. Huge radiant words were written on the yellow mango background, announcing the date of the grand opening of some restaurant. However, it wasn't the grand words nor the fruity picture on the wall that made him shout inwardly with excitement, but it was the small, camouflaged door that swung open as he sprinted across the slippery floor. An elderly woman held the door open, her face filled with anxiety as she shouted.

"Quickly!"

"I'm getting there, damn it!" He yelled back.

Mustering all the energy he ever possessed, he flung himself through the open door and into the dark room as the woman swiftly slammed the door closed. She let out a surprised gasp when loud crashes were heard just outside the door along with angry buzzes.

"I'll take care of it."

He could barely move his head to look at the owner of the voice. Instead, he lay prone on the floor, panting as he suddenly felt a blast of heat behind him.

"Tawamura-san?" The woman asked as she kneeled beside him.

"No, it's Santa a few months late," he growled.

"By looking at your dry attitude, I guess you really are him," the woman replied. "Do you have it?"

"Damn it woman, give me some time to catch my breath," he grumbled as he pulled the chain over his head with clumsy fingers.

She accepted the silver chain and brought the jewel that was dangling on it up to her eye level. She let out a sigh of relief, but soon her eyes went round.

"There's a crack in it!" She exclaimed.

"Oh yeah, forgot to tell you about that," Kouga said as he got up from the floor. He looked around at his surroundings, only to realize that they were in a dimly lit, empty room. He blinked his blue eyes several times to adjust to the dark and finally got to see why he had felt the sudden heat.

An old man, even more ancient looking than the woman, was leisurely emitting flames of fire from his mouth towards the door. The stingers had already made several large holes and some of the buzzing insects were trying to stick their heads through to tear down the door. The blast of heat was leaving a few charcoal bodies to crumble towards the ground, but the number just didn't seem to be reducing. Red flames reflected off the pair of unusually large eyes of the man and judging by the way his green robe was limply hanging on his shoulders, he had a rather bony structure.

"So...What in the seven hells, are those things?" Kouga asked as he pointed at the door.

"Saimyoshyo, but that's not the point!" she shouted angrily. "There's a shard missing!"

"Oh, right, that. I used it as a bait."

"You WHAT!"

"Calm down," Kouga smoothly replied, "A friend of mine is carrying it so he can lure the bastard out. I've got two of my side watching guard near the dove and they're quite responsible and I assure you that you will get your last shard of the purple thingy back."

"You don't understand!" the woman cried out, "The jewel can't be purified if it isn't in its full form! I told you that over the line!"

"Relax, woman! He's much faster on his feet than me and if I got here in one piece, he certainly can!"

"If he doesn't get here before sunset, the ritual cannot be performed!"

"What ritual?"

"Kaede, I think the fire's going off," a wheezing voice interrupted.

The two whipped their heads to the right just in time to see the charcoaled door crashing down.

* * *

"Kouga. Kouga!" 

"Urgh..."

Miroku let out an exasperated sigh as he realized that his fellow friend had knocked himself out with alcohol. He tenderly placed his hands under Kouga's limp shoulders and heaved. He slowly dragged his friend across the kitchen floor, wondering how he even got in this situation in the first place. Finally managing to reach the couch in the living room, he slowly heaved his friend's limp body onto it. Miroku looked down at his unconscious friend as he ran a hand through his raven hair.

"Kouga, if you don't wake up in the next three seconds, I'm going to call Ayame," he said threateningly.

A mumble escaped Kouga's lips. Miroku leaned closer and poked him in the arm.

"What ritual..."

He waited for more, but all he heard was a loud snore. Giving his sleeping friend an incredulous look in response of his sleep talk, Miroku sighed once more and took out his phone.

* * *

"Oh shit, oh shit, oh shit." 

He wished he could stop saying that for the day. It was bad enough he had been in a quite a big tussle with a few overly large wasps, but now he was sprinting through the pristine halls of an hospital, which he wasn't even sure was the right one.

_"We were attacked, Kouga."_

_"There were just too many."_

_"His arm's in a bad shape... This lady went with him in the ambulance..."_

_"No, we don't know which hospital, we were busy looking for you!" _

Why wasn't anyone on the goddamn floor? He swiftly ran along the slippery surface and made a sharp turn around the corner, the hasty action almost causing him to crash into someone. A nurse, by the look of her uniform, let out a short gasp of surprise as he tried to regain his balance.

"Sorry... " He panted through ragged breaths. "But I'm looking...For...Silver hair... Just came in..."

"Oh, if you're talking about the patient with the severe cut on his arm-"

"Yes, that's him!"

"You'll have to wait for a few more hours, he's still in the surigical room," she concluded.

"Will he be all right?"

"It appears so," she said with a smile. "A friend of mine is in there and she seemed to look quite relieved through the screen."

He let out a deep sigh and his knees almost gave out. He staggered slightly, surprising the woman in front of him, and leaned on the wall. She laid a hand on his arm and peered at his face under his sweaty bangs, her brow furrowed in mild concern.

Absent-mindedly letting his eyes to swiftly take in her features, he felt his lips curl into a small smirk when he found that she was quite pleasing to the eye. She was a few inches shorter than him with a slim figure, her dark red hair reaching her mid-back. Dainty pointed ears stuck out from the flaming strands of her hair which happened to contrast with the color of her emerald green eyes.

"So..." He lazily said, a smile still playing on his lips. "Do you happen to know which room he's going to be in?"

"Are you family?"

Her question was not what he expected. His smile faltered.

"...Family?"

"Yes," she replied with quizzical eyes, "Are you not his brother?"

"Uh...No."

He later regretted saying that.

Her brow furrowed, this time in mild annoyance as she looked at him.

"Cousin?"

"No."

"...Father?"

"Hell, no!"

"Then how do you know him?" She asked with a small frown as she straightened herself, "You do know acquaintances are not allowed inside until the patient is fully conscious, don't you?"

"...Of course, I do," he slowly said as he stood on his full height.

She raised her left eyebrow, questioning him.

"Well, I'm not exactly his brother...But uh..."

She waited.

"I'm actually...His... Brother-in-law."

He immediately regretted what he had just said as he received a skeptical look.

"Brother-in-law." She repeated.

"...Yes."

"So, your...Wife... Would be his only sibling...Which would be his half-brother."

He stared at the smirking woman before him as he realized his mistake.

"I happen to be a devoted reader of newspapers and I see Koizu-san's face quite often in the business section."

"Does this mean I can't see him before he wakes up?"

"Since I know his half-brother is straight, quite possibly," she said as she gave him a wry smile.

He gave her an irritated look before he slumped on the floor, leaning himself against the wall. He felt relieved now that he found out Sesshomaru's whereabouts and welfare, but the thought of having to wait for another few hours was just too overwhelming. He had just spent the last half an hour running around place to place to find which hospital he had been taken to and an hour or so fighting off countless Saimyosho. Oh, yes. He couldn't possibly forget Kaede's loud tirade that had also took him another half an hour.

He was silently moping his abhorrent reality when he felt her kneeling beside him. He paid no attention to her until he felt a searing pain on the side of his face.

"Hey!" He growled as his hand instinctively reached for the pained spot.

She caught his hand with a stern grip before it reached its destination. She had a red bottle of antibiotics in her other hand.

"Hold still," she insisted as she took off the cover of the bottle. "There's a deep scratch on your cheek."

He grudgingly obliged to her orders and merely winced as the stinging liquid was applied onto his cheek. The close contact had allowed him to take in a whiff of her scent. It sent tingling sensation down his nose as he strained to remember where he had smelt her scent before. She smelt like...A flower.

'Ayame...' He thought.

"There," she said in a satisfied voice. He broke out of his thoughts and realized that a Band-Aid had been applied on his cheek as well.

"You carry this stuff around in your pockets?" He asked in a teasing tone.

"Yes, as I am a nurse," she responded with an equally warm smile.

"So... Am I going to get the name of my beautiful healer?" He questioned with a smirk.

She blushed a pretty hue of red before answering him.

"It's Ayame."

His eyebrows quirked upwards.

"Hm... It fits you," he blandly commented.

"And may I get yours?" She smiled.

His baby blue eyes twinkled as he answered her.

"Kouga."

* * *

"Kouga? Kouga..." 

He strained to part his eyelids, but they were just too heavy. He let out a groan as he felt a migraine coming.

A smooth hand swept his bangs away and he soon felt a pair of lips on his forehead. He recognized the scent.

"Ayame?" He drowsily called. He finally managed to open his eyes to see her blurry figure. It took him a while to focus his gaze to be able to see her concerned face staring down at him.

"Are you all right?" She whispered.

He looked at her and didn't answer as he noticed her slightly red eyes and her shaking hands. He looked over at Miroku, silently asking an explanation with his eyes, but only received a confused look from his friend. He sat up heavily, not caring to straighten his disheveled hair, and pulled her into a tight hug. She accepted and wrapped her arms around his neck, quietly crying into his shoulder.

"I told them, Kouga..." Her voice was muffled by his shirt.

"It's all right Ayame..." He rubbed the small of her back, trying to soothe her.

"She's not even crying, Kouga," she sobbed. "How can she take that in? Why is she doing that to herself?"

He didn't say anything as she cried. All he could do right now was inwardly cursing his best friend for causing pain to everyone by being a selfish asshole.

"Don't leave me, Kouga," Ayame whispered into his neck. "Please don't ever leave me."

He closed his eyes as he buried his nose into her hair.

"I won't."

Miroku watched helplessly at the door, once again pondering how everything became such a mess.

He figured that not everybody was having the best day of their lives.

* * *

Flunked exams. 

Has anyone noticed Hojo's first name does not appear in the manga nor anime? Poor guy. Doesn't have much of a role.

Oh, yes. Ayame is also the name of the purple flower the wolf demoness uses to decorate her lovely hair. That might help you understand why Kouga had thought of her name beforeshe even said it(No, he is not psychic).

If the chapter was a bit confusing, please let me know.I'll explain it on the next update.

Reviews would be nice.

...Very nice.


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